Fairy Tail: The Final Bout
by Tyoung32
Summary: Finally, (After more unfinished work) After all they've. Even through, Fairy Tail and White Eclipse have decided to take it back to the beginning, yet the end. It was time to decide which guild was truly number one. The only way to decide, was an all out fight between their bests. Who will win? Will Fairy Tail remain supreme? Or will White Eclipse finally take the throne?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Dawn

"This is it." The raven haired S class Mage spoke, standing before a plethora of familiar faces. A small smile of content, sprinkled with pride and happiness dawned his features as he addressed his familiars. Together, they all stood around him in a tightened circle, all holding positive or determined expressions of their own. Removing his hands from his pockets, Reve Volver of White Eclipse would continue on. "After all we've been through, this is it. We made a deal, a promise, that today would mark the day we decide who is king. After this, there's no more back and forth between Fairy Tail and White Eclipse.. After all we've been through. This rivalry has escalated beyond anything I could ever imagine, and it's been an exhilarating ride the entire time."

He scanned the circle, noticing that the looks upon his guild mates faces have yet to change; a good sign. With their attention still fully in his grasp, Reve's speech took a turn no one was used to, but this time, it was expected. "When we became known, everyone looked down upon us because our entire existence as a guild was being held up by the foundation of competition. They said you couldn't form a guild with such a foundation, but we proved them wrong! They said that you can't form a family if all you care about it being the best, but we proved that wrong too! We're nothing but a family with the same burning desire to be the greatest mages in Earthland! We've ran beside each other since day one, all while trying to outrun the competition in this race to become the greats!" The more the charismatic, influential gunslinger spoke, the more anxious and excited the crowd of Eclipse Mages became. Grins and smiles continued to widen with each passing second, ready to go. "But, and as I hate to admit it, Fairy Tail has been running with us the entire time as well. We've been neck and neck since the day we met...From the Grand Magic Games.." Takeru, the Shadow Dragon Slayer began to quietly seethe just from the mention of the games; the place where he failed to defeat Natsu when he and The Salamander were the last two remaining. His demeanor change only caused grins of relation from the others around him. It was the reason they were here today. "...To the battle against Tartaros, and even the Spriggan — to Zeref and Acnologia himself...and even the huge war between the other countries. It's true that we started this rivalry between ourselves and Fairy Tail, but today, we'll also end it with us on top!"

Immediately everyone began cheering, getting pumped for the upcoming event between the two guilds. Smiling, Reve then held up his arms to regain attention as he continued on. "I just want to finish by saying...you guys truly are family, so don't let anyone from any other guild try to take that away from you. We've done it all together, good or bad. Human, demon, or dragon...we all share the same symbol that connects us together. People have come and gone at this guild, but those in front of me, are truly the family that I couldn't have asked for. And though some are missing...they'll always be in our hearts. We do this for them! We do this for the guild you're standing in right now! We do this for the old man! Most importantly, we do this for each other! Now one more time! Let me hear you at the top of your lungs everyone! IT'S WHITE ECLIPSE..."

In unison, even those you usually don't participate in shouting the motto belched it out, causing a rumbling in the guild as they all cheered their loudest, screaming "...OR SECOND PLACE!" As Calium stood to the side with a smile on his face, he watched his children prepare for their final fights. The rambling with each other out the guild master at ease as he continued observing. "Good luck, my children. This is the path you've chosen, and it seems you've picked the right one. Like Reve said, you and Fairy Tail have been beside each other since the beginning. But now..it's time for one of you to pull away from the other. I wish you all the best of luck, but it'll be your will and determination that'll decide who'll be the last one standing. Oi...to think me, a man who just wanted to be alone until he died, would become a guild master of one of Earthland's strongest guilds..." He chuckled to himself. "Fate has one crazy sense of humor."

"Master!" Selene, the dark turquoise haired Diamond Dragon Slayer grabbed Calium's attention. The guild master then turned his sights back to a bunch of smiling mages. "It's time! You ready?!"

Staring for a bit longer, Calium then nodded. "I am. Let's go end this once and for all. White Eclipse, you have my permission...

..to go all out."

White Eclipse: LETS GO!

"Phantom Lord, Grimoire Heart, Sabertooth before they became our allies. These guilds combined still haven't given us as much trouble as who we're facing off with today." Makarov spoke, eyes closed as he stood upon one of the support beams just below the roof of the guild. Beneath him, every Fairy Tail Mage, and even one Jellal Fernandes stood, watching the guild master as he continued on. "At the same time, they were amazing allies when our backs were against the wall, though their help came from their own want of personal gain or survival. This, at first, put me in a conundrum. It made me think, maybe they just want to be the best guild, is that so bad? The answer is YES!" He shouted, clenching a right fist tightly. It caused Natsu and Gray to grin near maliciously. "Yes, because on their journey to become the best, they've spat on our names countlessly! They think they've made a noble climb, but not in our eyes! They've tried to drag the Fairy Tail name through the mud one too many times! And now...now they wanted this end all fight to see who is the best guild in Fiore?! I say, BRING IT ON!" As he shouted, Makarov threw his right hand into the air, holding up the Fairy Tail sign as the others below him cheered as loud as they could, raising the same hand for the same sign as their master. "Nothing will be the same after this fight. This fight, will take you to the very brink... everything will be on the line here! Erza, Mira, Laxus, Gray, Natsu! Everyone! There's no holding back here! This will be the first, and last time that we go all out against another guild that doesn't have one of our own kidnapped, or has hurt any of our nakama! This fight here, is to finally rid ourselves of the thorns in our sides! This is to defeat White Eclipse once and for all, and to prove, that Fairy Tail is the greatest guild, in all of Fiore!"

Natsu then shouted with clenched fists, head back to the ceiling. "THEN WHAT'RE WE WAITING FOR! LETS BURN THEM TO ASH! I'M ALL FIRED UP!"

His exclamation brighter than Makarov's own speech, the guild began cheering again, twice as loud as Makarov smiled on. He then spoke once more. "Alright then, Fairy Tail! Let's move out, and meet our opponents!"

A large space of land between Magnolia and Crocus. That's where they met for their final showdown. Everything has led up to this and as Fairy Tail and White Eclipse stood upon opposite sides of that's great open space, countless of people, not only their guilds, but mages of other guilds have gathered, watching from a safe distance.

"I can barely see a thing." Sting of Sabertooth said. "Is this really the distance we have to watch from."

"Relax." Rogue interjected. "There'll be lacrima screens once they begin. But to answer your question, yes, this is as close as we can get without being in any potential crossfire.

"Whew! They're ants from back here!" Bacchus noted as he looked on, gourd in his right hand. "Turn them lacrima screens on already! The pre-fight is just as WILD as the real thing! I want it all!"

"COOL COOL COOOOOOL!" Jason exclaimed repeatedly, pumping his fists over and over. "A COOL final showdown and I get to cover it for Sorcerer Magazine! The Battle for Top Guild! That'll be its headline! No events! Just fights! SO COOOOOOL!"

As everyone looked on from miles away, the two teams stood face to face with each other as two lacrima screens indeed did appear behind each respective team. Glares exchanged, mixed with cockiness, determination, anxiousness, anger, and outright malice thickened the air between them. Nobody understood how important this was to the two guilds, but those who had an idea had the closest seats miles away as they waited for the party to start.

Fairy Tail Roster:

Erza Scarlet

Wendy Marvell

Gray Fullbuster

Gildarts Clive

Cana Alberona

Juvia Lockser

Laxus Dreyar

Natsu Dragneel

Elfman Strauss

Mirajane Strauss

Lucy Heartfilia

Freed Justine

Gajeel Redfox

Bickslow

Evergreen

Jellal Fernandes

Levy Mcgarden

White Eclipse Roster:

Reve Volver

Waiston Tunundra

Kuro Crane

Sidney Castle

Jack Royal

Heather Viperosso

Jaxon Meteoro

Takeru Tenebrae

Cygnus Gwydion

Selene Marquise

Luke Cloud

Skye Ravenwood

Adamantine

Kairi Ayres

Arcturus

Aira Aeolus

El Rayo

"Seventeen each." Ichiya let out a low whistle. "This will be a long parfum. Long, but exciting. I don't see a single slouch over there."

"Yeah, but I see a huge disadvantage when it comes to raw power for Fairy Tail." Kagura said, making presence known. "I'm glad they retrieved most of their nakama, but Adamantine and Arcturus...the Dragon and the Demon are competing. It's bad enough that their ace Sidney is there, but Adam and Arc are on the same level he is. Meanwhile, all Fairy Tail has that high is Gildarts, and I don't think he can beat all three. I'm not sure if he can even beat one.."

"Now now Kagura, let's not doubt Fairy Tail so quickly." Said Lyon, who was now seen standing with the rest of Lamia Scale. "They've had their back against the wall against greater deals."

"But who was always there to help them when they did?" A rhetorical question by Hibiki. He then continued, justifying his words. "I'm not rooting against anyone, because if it wasn't for White Eclipse as much as Fairy Tail, we wouldn't exist anymore. Despite whether they fought along side us for personal gain or not, it doesn't matter. They've saved us just as much as Fairy Tail, so I'm sure at least most of us can cheer this final fight on neutrally, yes?"

"Sounds like an idea." Bacchus added. "Hibiki's gotta point, so I'm gonna do the same! Them brats have saved our hides and been through it all, just like Fairy Tail, so I'm gonna watch like it's my first time meeting them both! That'll make it even more wild!" "Four!" Quatro Cerberus yelled in unison. Nearly everyone else nodded in agreement as the debate quickly subsided. Right on time too..

"Just for you slow in head Fairies, we'll go over the format and rules once more." Reve said, arms folded as he stood across from Erza, of course. He wasn't alone in that department however, a lot of the mages were already standing across from who they truly wanted to destroy whether Fairy Tail or White Eclipse initiating.

"A series of one on ones. No random drawings, and none of those Grand Magic Game events needed here. You step up to the plate when you want to, and judging by how everyone is standing, it seems most of you know who you want your opponent to be. The fight will go on until your opponent is unconscious, unable to continue, or forfeits. This will continue until one team is completely beaten, making the team still standing the winner. Any questions?"

Erza then raised her hand with a smug look. "When do I get to destroy you? Are you waiting for the end, or do you want to be embarrassed now?"

Reve immediately clenched his jaw. A surprising comment from Erza, but for what was at stake today, and against who it was, no one was surprised by it, giving what these two have been through against each other. Quickly regaining himself however, Reve chuckled as he ran his right hand through his black hair. "Have you been sniffing your boyfriend Ichiya's perfumes again? It seems you're hallucinating again, Erza. What you lovers do behind closed doors should be kept there, got it?"

It was now Erza with a glare, comical though as the dig on her featuring Ichiya was brought upon the Requip Mage. Her own hair shadowing over her eyes, she remained quiet for a bit as the others continued.

"So..." Calium spoke, breaking the silence with a smirk.

"Which two are up first?" No one moved, not from nervousness or fear, but from the anxiousness of wanting their opponent to step up first. Each side had the same idea, wanting their opponent to step forward so they could meet them in the middle to let them know that they were their opponent, and that they were going to dominate them. Luke and Lucy exchanged glares, fists tightening and loosening. Gray and Kuro did the same, matching grins as they waited for each other to make a move. Takeru and Natsu both bared their teeth in smirking fashion towards each other. Soon, the tension between the thirty four turned into an influx of rising magic, slowly shaking the area around them.

"And that's just from a standoff." Minerva chimed in to the quaking ground, grinning. "This will really be one for the ages."

The rumbling standoff continued until finally..

She stepped forward. The brunette took to the middle of the standoff, waiting for whoever would oppose her. Her golden hues looked down the row of Fairy Tail mages until one finally made a move. Green hair marched forward, hand held onto his sheathed blade as she did the same. The others then began backing away an incredible distance to give them room as Makarov then spoke.

"So starting us off, its Skye Ravenwood versus Freed Justine! Good luck to you both! You two can begin once we clear the area."

As the two teams gradually disappear from sight, Skye and Freed continued to glare towards one another.

"Our rivalry doesn't really go anywhere past our guilds dislike for each other." Freed stated. Skye, the usual happy-go-lucky swordsman, nodded with a stern visage as she gripped her standard sword tighter; the clanging causing Freed to become on guard and clenching his own blade just the same. "That's the only reason I need to not hesitate." She replied. With her right hand tightly wrapped around the hilt of her sword, her left hand dangled to the ground. As it hung, blue lightning began to surge from her fingertips. Freed furrowed his brows as his left fingertips began to glow a purple hue, ready to write his runes at a moment's notice.

It was dawn. It was time. The battle between Fairy Tail and White Eclipse began as one anxious gunslinger roared at the top of his lungs.

"LEEEEETS GET IT OOOOOON!"


	2. Chapter 2: Written in Runes

Chapter 2: Written in Runes

"LETS GET IT OOOOON!"

The shout from one Reve Volver rung like a bell for the former assassin — Skye charging towards Freed with her right hand still glued to the hilt of her sheathed blade. No gimmicks just yet, the White Eclipse Mage ran straight for him, her lightning infused left hand leading the charge as she reared it behind her left ear prior to launching her hand forward for the Rune Mage's chest. Immediately, Freed countered by leaping off to the right, remaining calm and collected as he landed feet away. As Skye missed, she planted her feet into the ground and quickly turned to meet Freed once more. This time from the distance given Skye shot her blue lightning towards Freed like a projectile. Countering once again, Freed swiped his left hand across the air, creating a single line of runes. Those runes acted as a blockade as the blinding blue lightning slammed into them, sparking wildly yet harmless thanks to his defenses. A possible opening for Skye however? She definitely took the chance, leaping into the air behind the lightning blast and then dive-bombing towards Freed with her lightning infused hand once again. Swinging a downward punch to the top of his head, Skye just missed as Freed leapt away once more, creating a close call a Skye landed where he once stood. He became more on guard now, crouching with his hand on his blade as he cautiously watched the former assassin.

"Skye's really using that lightning of her's to start the fight. Unordinary." Luke chimed in. "She's looking for a big hit." Reve added, causing Luke to look his way. "Her lightning only paralyzes her opponent temporarily, but all Skye needs is a second's opening before she slices her opponent into pieces. That's what she's shooting for, to gain a heavy advantage."

"I see.." The Copy Cat noted, turning back to the fight. "Yeah, if she can land a big hit for her first strike, the fight will be to her advantage."

"Yeah but Freed isn't giving an inch either." Adamantine said, keeping his arms folded. "It's like he's aware of the strategy himself. Which he might be. Isn't he one of the smartest mages in that guild?"

"It doesn't matter! She's got this! Come on Skye!" Waiston shouted, pumping his fist as the two squared off once more.

Skye began rushing towards Freed once more, a straight line once again as Freed slowly began unsheathing his blade. Skye's eyes perked at the subtle gesture, but it didn't cause her momentum to falter. Instead, once Skye reached melee range, she ducked right under Freed's first swing of his blade. "You're mine!" She proudly exclaimed, shooting her lightning fist towards Freed's chest once again. "That's where you're mistaken." Freed spoke in retaliation, keeping a stoic look as Skye raised a brow in mid-swing. Suddenly, her fist was stopped short by what felt like a wall. Lightning sparking everywhere except it's intended target, Skye's eyes widened as she noticed it too late. In the air where Freed swung his blade just above her, were runes — the same runes Freed created with his hand just previously.

"Dark Écriture: Pain!"

With another horizontal swing of his sword, Freed wrote the runes across the chest of the assassin. Immediately after their appearance, Skye's body began to glow a purplish hue.

"Oh no.." Selene said, showing the same amount of utmost concern as the rest of White Eclipse. Cygnus clenched his jaw and bared his teeth tightly as he grabbed his own hair in worry. "We know what's coming, and I haven't seen it countered yet! She's in trouble!"

"Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain! Pain!"

Swipe after swipe, slash after slash! Freed continued to write "Pain" over and over again with his blade against Skye's frame. With each slash, Skye cried out in just that, pain — gradually succumbing to the intensity of Freed's Dark Écriture.

"Alright Freed!" Natsu shouted, throwing both his hands into the air. "That's our Freed alright!" Bickslow shouted as well with Evergreen cheering in the back, his dolls mocking his last words and Laxus merely standing before the Raijinshu with folded arms and a smirk upon his features.

"He's got her where he wants her! This'll be over quickly!" Cana shouted with a grin and a clenched fist.

"Let's not count any chickens before they hatch." Gildarts replied.

"Don't be a downer ya garbage father."

"Cana..!"

"Pain! Pain! Pain!" Freed continued the onslaught, Skye's expression gradually fading with each passing strike until finally Freed reared his blade back behind his hip. "This is Fairy Tail's victory!" Upon his words, Freed swung once more with all of his speed and might. A loud clang was heard however... and with widened eyes, Freed found himself in a stalemate of blades as Skye somehow managed to unsheathe her Claymore Sword despite the immeasurable amount of pain she was in.

"Skye...!?" Reve shouted in confusion and concern. The brunette was down to one knee, but the brown hair that covered her golden eyes were removed once she looked up to meet Freed's gaze. Still glowing that purple hue, she clenched her teeth as she began pushing back. "...Biofrost."

Suddenly, Skye's Claymore sword began to glow. Still holding the stalemate against Freed and his blade, her standard sword soon changed shape, turning to a ring-blade that resembled a small hula-hoop in size. With a hard grip on its inner ring, Skye pushed away from Freed, gaining space as he stumbled backwards for a few steps.

"Pai—" Freed was about to attack again, but was halted as he had to change maneuvers; avoiding the now incoming ring-blade by just a hair. The blade left the smallest of cuts on his left cheek, signifying just how close he was from losing his head in that instant. Yet, with that, it was merely a distraction. Just like that, Skye slammed her blue lightning infused left hand against Freed's chest, causing a immediate shock that led to a temporary paralysis as Freed became shook to his very core — the purple aura of Dark Écriture disappearing from Skye as well.

"Now its Freed that's in trouble!" Gray shouted with the others looking on in concern.

"Do it Skye!" Kuro shouted as the Biofrost made its way back around and into Skye's right hand. "Claymore!" She shouted, and the ring-blade soon shifted right back to her standard sword. With Freed unable to move, Skye swung her blade to his exposed frame in a diagonal manner...then a horizontal one...and finally a vertical slice right down the middle. Three powerful swings, all connecting as Freed cried out in the same octave that Skye gave when caught in his technique earlier.

"Freed!" Evergreen shouted in horror.

"Shit!" Bickslow cursed. "There's nothing he can do until that lightning fades! But it's wearing off now!"

As if she could hear Bickslow, Skye gave off a near wicked grin as the assassin summoned her lightning technique once more, striking Freed in the chest once again just before the first lightning strike completely faded just to repeat the torturous process once more.

"Savage!" Jaxon shouted as Freed cried out once more, smiling with widened eyes at the surprising Skye Ravenwood. White Eclipse began cheering in victory as even Sidney nodded and replied. "He's literally stuck. It's either give up or fall."

"What the hell!?" Gajeel shouted, clenching jaw and fists in annoyance. "Shit! There's nowhere for him to go!"

Spinning Claymore in her hands once, Skye gave Freed three more slashes in the same exact locations as the first set. On the third strike, the Requip Mage held her followthrough. "You have one second before I begin again. Do you concede?"

In the midst of his agonizing screams, Skye's question caused Freed to clench his teeth, refusing surrender as it was written in his angered yet pained visage. "Very well." Skye said as her hand began to spark once more.

"Freed! You have to fight out of it!" Laxus shouted, causing the others to look his way.

As Skye slammed another lightning palm against Freed's chest, causing him to cry out once more... "I know we're asking for a lot, but you gotta power out! You're a member of the Raijinshu, ain't ya!? Then act like it! My lightning is way more hectic than this! Come on Freed! FREED!"

As Skye reared her sword back to execute...

"Excuse my weakness, Laxus! I fell into the hype of what her lightning was capable of." Inner thoughts became the boost he needed to fight back as not only did Freed's right arm began to move, but simultaneously his right eye became pitch black with a purple pupil. As Skye started the first of her three swings, she sliced nothing but air as Freed disappeared in a plethora of scrambled letters. Those same runes reformed above Skye, high into the air and Freed reappeared within the midst of them; shirtless as Skye's attacks did a number on his attire as well as his body and being. The visible slash marks a clear branding of how intense the back and forth has already been, while Skye was no clean whistle either. Though Dark Écriture: Pain left no visible marks, the damage to her body was just as delivered, leaving these two at a near stalemate. As Freed fully reformed from teleporting via Rune Magic, dark wings appeared from his back. He now held the ability of flight thanks to his Dark Écriture: Wings. Holding his heavily damaged chest, panting, he kept his eyes upon the panting assassin. That's when Freed swung his sword against the air once more; this time the runes sticking to his own chest as he began to glow.

"Dark Écriture: Absolute Shadow."

Freed's upper body became covered in a darkened armor, complete with large shoulder pads and a helmet that gave him a menacing look. With his now slicked back hair protruding from his helmet, his transformation was complete, causing Skye to become on guard as she crouched ready to go for another round.

"Absolute Shadow huh?" Bacchus said while watching the giant screen before him. He then raised his gourd to drink. "This fight picked up in an instant. I thought that Skye chick had this fight in the bag once she scored that lightning strike! That wasn't wild of me at all to doubt a Fairy Tail Mage after all I've seen from them."

"Absolute Shadow with wings." Hibiki added, watching intently. "I guess he's planning to take this fight to the sky, but she can't fly, can she?"

"Who knows what they can do anymore." Ren said, Sherri hanging onto his arm lovingly. "They surprise us every time, which is the reason we're here watching them duke it out now."

"So am I gonna have to come up there?" Skye asked with a smirk.

"If you can." Freed replied, welcoming the banter from the brunette.

"If you insist." She murmured, and as she did, Skye lowly crouched, placing all of her strength into her legs as she sparked up her blue lightning once again. In one push, Ravenwood shot into the air like a rocket, swinging her left hand forward to once more try her paralyzing tactic. This time instead of retreating, Freed reared back his own opposing arm, and his own surge of lightning began spawned in the palm of his hand. An Electric Shockwave, an electric orb forming in his hand — Freed swung his hand forward to meet Skye's own lightning attack. The two collided, but the winner of that duel was easily spotted as the shocking premise of Freed's attack outshone and overpowered Skye's docile in comparison lightning. The assassin went falling backwards in recoil, smoke coming from her left hand she was now clutching as she fell from a sky's height.

"And just like that!" Gray shouted as Erza nodded and responded. "Her lightning is weak, just meant to paralyze. Freed would win that every time."

Laxus grinned as Freed then pursued the falling Skye like an osprey swooping down towards the prey it's locked on to. About halfway down, Skye finally recovered from her recoil. She looked up, noticing Freed quickly closing the distance between them with his armored right claw like hand reared back.

"Kusari!" She shouted as Freed neared. Following, he'd Claymore sword shifted once more, turning into a sickle that was attached to a weighted chain. Gripping her new weapon tightly, the second Freed swung his arm forward, Skye pulled her legs to her chest and then pushed them out, flipping over Freed with the powerful kick of air.

"...HEEEEEH!?" Toby screeched as everyone who wasn't bothered by his boisterous wailing continued to look on impressed, shocked. "Did she just push off of air!?"

"Sky walking." Yuka, the heavy browned Mage of Lamia Scale answered Toby befuddlement. "She's very talented. And the fact you didn't know what it is, proves why we're on the sidelines watching instead of being one of the two fighting."

"Freed-san's in trouble again!" Wendy pointed out as Skye made a perfect flip behind him. Skye then threw her Kursari forward by its sickle. The weighted chain then wrapped around Freed's body multiple times, holding his arms down by his side as they two became clamped by the heavy chains. With Freed tightly wrapped up, Skye landed on the Rune Mage's back, pressing her right foot against the back of his head as they continued to plummet towards the ground at such a high speed.

"Freed!" Evergreen shouted.

"Do it Skye!" Takeru responded.

Try as he might, Freed couldn't struggle out of the chains, and finally... the Rune Mage slammed head first into the ground. A small crater formed from where they landed, and hoping out of the smoky debris was Skye with her sickle and chain weapon, swinging it cockily as she smiled innocently.

"Now that's a crash landing." Luke's first of many puns finally showed its face as White Eclipse began cheering for their assassin. As the smoke cleared, Freed could be seen climbing out of the crater slowly, teetering back and forth as he walked out in chipped armor. Skye lowered her gaze back to a serious visage, tightening her grip on her Kurasi once again, swinging the sickle rapidly.

"He's barely standing after that fall..." Laxus noted.

"Finish him!" Reve and Adam simultaneously shouted. Upon command, Skye let out a yell as she crouched and then lunged forward.

"...Activate. Jutsu Shiki."

Suddenly, Skye slammed face first into a wall of Runes! Holding her head, she rubbed her forehead as the wall of runes sprouted up towards the sky, leaving Skye no escape for the time being.

"What? When did you have time..!? I didn't see you —" Stopping her own sentence, Skye's eyes widened in shock. Flashing back to the beginning of the match when Skye was chasing Freed with her lightning, she just now realized how Freed's own hand was glowing with his lettering magic, yet he never used to to attack nor defend except once at the end of the exchange... "When he completed the Runes, he was able to defend my lightning strike with his own magic... that's why he was just running away at first..! To finish his..."

"He's got her! That's a MAN of a move, Freed!" Elfman shouted as the rest of Fairy Tail sighed in relief. "It was one thing to try and not get excited when he finished the Runes.." Bickslow said. "...But it became a whole different thing when that Skye girl kept avoiding them without even knowing."

"But he's got her now!" Natsu shouted.

Freed regained himself the best he could, standing tall as Skye continuously tried to break free of the Runes she was surrounded by. "Since I know you're too stubborn to give up just by being trapped, I've made the rules simple." He then pointed towards Skye in a condescending yet demanding manner.

"For as long as you hold a weapon, you'll not be allowed to leave these Runes."

"What!?" Skye exclaimed and Reve echoed. Skye then turned to her weapon, which then formed to her Claymore sword once more. With much hesitation, Skye dropped her sword, testing out Freed's Runes as she slowly pushed her hand through; the Runes allowing the former assassin access out of its trap. The second her hand passed through, Freed grabbed it, catching Skye off guard as he pulled her out the Runes without her weapon and slamming an armored fist to her abdomen.

"Tssss oo!" Bickslow and the others flinched from the blow to the stomach. "I felt that one!" So did Skye, and she was hunched over, holding her gut with both hands as she wobbled forward. "You're an amazing swordsman, but without your weapon, you're just an acrobatic side show, correct?" Freed asked as he slammed another plated right hand to Skye's jawline, causing her to go sliding back into the ground, kicking up dirt and rubble until she finally slid to a stop against her will.

"Hey hey! Freed really has picked up the maliciousness!" Sting shouted as everyone watched.

"A side show, you called me?" She asked, pushing up to her hands and knees as she spat blood from her mouth. Heavy pants exuded, Skye looking for the will to stand once more. "Is that what I am without my sword?"

Freed continued to stalk, nearing his prey as he rotated his right wrist whilst preparing for a finishing blow. Before he could arrive however, Skye stood up once again, teetering back and forth before finally regaining some type of balance. "To spit on my abilities is to spit on White Eclipse, which is the reason we're here in the first place. You fairies just don't learn, huh?" Skye began limping towards Freed, but the closer she got, the more poised her walk became as he strengthened into a jog, and then a run. Freed was a bit surprised himself. "Such will power. They really do match us when it comes to not giving in and pushing forward. But... I won't let you move another step forward! I will take this victory here!"

As Freed shouted, he threw another powerful right punch — one that Skye avoided by leaping over, landing on Freed's arm as if she was weightless. Skye then spun, slamming a kick to Freed's helmeted head and snapping him to his right. As he stumbled, Skye jumped again, landing behind him with a right hook aimed for his head once again. This time, Freed blocked it with his forearm, grabbing her arm right after the parry. The Rune Mage then slammed his left knee into Skye's abdomen, bending her over once more. Sucking it up however, Skye quickly flipped, slamming a left kick to his chin in the process. Back pedaling a few feet from the blow, Freed turned his sights back to an incoming Skye, blue lightning surging from her left hand yet again.

"That doesn't work anymore, remember!" He yelled, creating his Electric Shockwave once more. The two collided lightning strikes for a quick stalemate before Freed was seen easily overcoming Skye. Before he could completely overcome her though, Skye's right hand began to illuminate that same surging blue. As the lightning in her left hand faded, Skye grabbed Freed's hand despite the overwhelming shock it emitted. She cried out, yet held on as she locked fingers with the Rune Mage. Now, with her right hand surging...

"It doesn't matter which hand!" Freed yelled, creating another shockwave of his own in his free hand to counter Skye's, but as he reared back, Skye swung her lightning infused hand...into her own chest!

"What're you doin - AHH!" Freed's question was interrupted yet answered. As Skye shocked herself with her own lightning, her interlocked fingers allowed the current to pass through her and onto Freed, shocking him into temporary paralysis once again.

"Wow! GO SKYE! TAKE ADVANTAGE! FINSIH IT!" Kairi yelled from the sidelines. Without a doubt.

With Freed unable to move, Skye lifted the Rune Mage and began running towards the Jutsu Shiki!

"What's she doing?" Minerva asked, inquiring intrigue as she focused on Skye.

"She's headed for the Runes! She's going for her sword!" Gray shouted. "Freed! Break out of it!"

Slowly, Freed began to fight back against the paralyzing lightning, moving his right arm, then his left to grab ahold of Skye. Yet, the assassin managed to make it inside the Jutsu Shiki, pushing Freed off of her as she grabbed her Claymore sword in one motion. That's when she shouted, "Requiem!" At the same time, Freed was able to break free of the lightning faster than usual. As a result, he grabbed the hilt of his sword. "Dark Écriture: ...Slay!"

Everything happened so fast..

Skye and Freed both swung at a near simultaneous rate. As Skye held her followthrough, her sword had just finished glowing and reforming to the Requiem she called for; a straight, wide sword with a sturdy yet thickened blade and broad edge. The sword was just a bit bigger than Skye herself. Apparently, she only needed it for one swing, as Freed's Runes shattered into pieces, and the Rune Mage of the Raijinshu himself...fell to the ground — out cold.

Silence and shock at first, Skye fell to her knees from Freed's last strike, blurred vision and all, but she held up a fist to signify that she was okay. That's when Calium happily called it.

"Freed Justine can no longer continue! The winner is Skye Ravenwood!"

Cheers came the loudest from White Eclipse as Adamantine retrieved the assassin, carrying her back to the team. "SKYEEEEE!" They shouted, causing her to smile past the pain she was in. She then gave the dragon carrying her a thumbs up. "I did it."

Adam nodded with a small smile. "You did, now get some rest. We may need you again."

"Oi, and White Eclipse draws first blood." Bacchus sung as he dangled the gourd from his fingertips. "I wonder how long it'll take Fairy Tail to bounce back from that."

"COOOOOL COOOLL COOOOOOOOOL!" Jason shouted. "What an amazing match, and we're just getting started! This is everything COOL any fan could ask for!"

Making his way back to his guild defeated, Freed kept his head lowered as he bit his own lip to hold back the whimpering. "Hey! Great fight Freed!" Natsu shouted, causing him to raise his head. "Yeah!" Lucy shouted. "You gave it your all! You were amazing too! Scary even!"

Laxus then planted a hand on his shoulder, staring out towards an incoming Waiston Tunundra. "Good job. Let us handle the rest."

Freed stared, then nodded as he wiped the potential tears from his eyes. At this time, Wendy Marvell was already walking forward.

"Good luck Wendy! Be careful!" Charla shouted. Wendy kept her sights on her opponent however, and the two Dragon Slayers stood face to face, Wendy having to look up thanks to the height difference.

Calium then yelled.

"Looks like it's Waiston Tunundra versus Wendy Marvell! You two! Whenever you're ready!

Begin!" 


	3. Chapter 3: A Song of Sky and Ice

Chapter 3: A Song of Sky and Ice

"Amazing, Skye!" Reve said, pushing down on her head and ruffling through the brunette's crown. At the same time, Kairi hugged her with her own praise. "I'm so proud of you! You're so strong and independent now that it's amazing." Laughing, soaking in the praise, Skye then stopped as her two "older siblings" did as they exchanged glances. It's been a long time since they acted like the family Skye forced them to be, but with an awkward silence, they both respectively backed away from each other quietly. Skye sighed, absorbing the moment while it lasted, yet still smiling a bit even as it ended. "Thank you both, for helping me grow into what I am now. I needed both of you my entire life, and you never failed me in being there."

The two exchanging sentimental looks once more, Reve finally broke the silence...but changed the topic as he directed attention back to the upcoming fight. "Hey, its Waiston's turn. Let's root for him just the same." Skye huffed, but turned to the soon to begin battle, watching intently whilst sitting upon the ground to rest her legs. "Let's go Waiston! Two and oh baby!"

"Just like Freed and Skye, I can't think of any real reason to pummel you besides the fact that you're a Fairy Tail Mage." Waiston said. "But...that's all the reason I need!"

Wendy immediately shook her head. "That's not true! I have more reason than that to win here today!" Her exclamation caught Waiston off guard. "Oh? And what's that?" He asked, grinning maliciously. Wendy then clenched both of her fists, showing irritation. "You haven't forgotten the Grand Magic Games, have you? When you ate my magic for your own gain? Ever since then, you've been flaunting your dual mode every chance you got! I know it's not much.." She said, fists shaking by her sides as she lowered her head. Her eyes then shot back up to Waiston's gaze. "But if you add that on top of your unnecessary insults if Fairy Tail, then it's true that I can't allow you to walk freely thinking that you're better than us!"

Waiston cocked a brow, head tilted to the side. "Eh!? That's your resolve huh!? Well, it's not what you believe in, it's how much you believe in it, right?" He began laughing.

"However!" He said, demeanor quickly shifting as he raised a right leg, shoving his foot towards Wendy's sternum. With a quick reaction, the little DragonSlayer placed her arms over her chest, blocking the powerful shoving kick though she still went sliding backwards for a couple of meters. As she looked back up with grimace from the surprise attack, her eyes widened a bit as she was now staring into the yellow eyes of Waiston, who towered over her with malicious intent, bloodlust in his eyes as an icy blue aura began surrounding him. Only his bright eyes were visible through his dangling hair, adding the fear effect if there was any. "Your resolve doesn't mean shit to me, little girl. I'm going to crush you here! Prepare to be frozen solid!"

"Come!" Wendy shouted as she jumped into a readied stance, and Waiston was well on the way, pushing off the ground with immense force — force that left footprint sized craters where he last stood. His icy blue aura began to wrap around his right fist as he reared it back behind his ear. "Frozen Dragon's..Iron Fist!"

Wendy held her ground, and with precise timing she ducked at the very last second. Not only did she evade, but the second she did, the Sky Dragon Slayer's hands became her feet as she planted them to the ground, bringing her knees to her chest. "Sky Dragon's Claw!" She shouted, propelling her feet upward and slamming them into Waiston's chin; just underneath as the male left his feet unwillingly, yet finding himself hovering just over Wendy once he recovered from the kick.

"And...!" She exclaimed as Waiston finally regained some balance. It was too late for the Frozen Dragon Slayer at that moment however, as Wendy appeared just above him, swinging a Wind enhanced right claw for the top of his head. "...Claw!"

Both attacks landing in succession, Waiston hit the dirt, hard. Wendy landed right behind him, on her feet as she remained cautious and ready, sure that the White Eclipse representer was no where near done after such attacks.

"Two sky attacks, but both melee. She's scared." Sidney said, unmoving. "I was going with cautious, but scared seems more appropriate when you think about it." Cygnus added. Reve simply nodded in agreement to the other two as Kairi turned to the three. "Uh, are we watching the same fight? She's going in on Waiston right now."

Cygnus then darted his eyes towards Kairi. "So it seems, right? Waiston's fine. Those attacks did nothing, especially without her Dragon Force or enhancement spells. What he was trying to bait her into, was a strong Sky Dragon attack..."

"Oh yeah." Kairi added, pressing a fist into her open hand as it just came to her. "Mr. Frozen Sky Dragon over there is looking for a power boost. Huh, this early though?"

Sidney shook his head. "I don't think he's just looking for a power boost. He's looking to deliver despair. Wendy took this matchup, knowing she would be at a complete disadvantage once he turns to his dual mode. That means either she has a plan, or she's too determined to show that she can beat him despite the disadvantage. If it's the latter... well, Waiston just won't stand for that."

Kairi then blinked once, asking a simple question that no one had the answer to. "...What if it's both?"

Waiston made his way back to his feet, brushing off the two successful attacks he just endured as simple love taps. Rotating his neck, cracking it to loosen up, Waiston went back to to his predatory look towards Wendy Marvell. "You're quick, but you lack aggression."

"This isn't a training session!" Wendy shouted, soaring towards Waiston with her arms out like wings. Once close enough, she retracted those arms over her head only to shoot them forward once again. "Sky Dragon's Wing Attack!" From her war cry, an expulsion of whirlwinds spun towards the Frozen Dragon Slayer rapidly. Yet, before they could reach their intended target, Waiston simply raised his right leg and slammed it against the ground once more. Upon impact with said ground, a large iceberg shot up from the soil, blocking not only Wendy's view of Waiston, but the path of her Wing Attack as well — the whirlwinds slamming into the giant iceberg and then harmlessly dispersing.

"You won't escape!" Wendy shouted as she quickly made her way around the iceberg with a single, quickened leap. When she arrived however, Waiston was no longer there. Confusion struck her, but not as hard as..

"Once more! Iron Fist...!" He yelled, appearing behind Wendy with his left fist cocked and covered in ice. "...Of the Frozen Dragon!" He swung, slamming a clean hit; a powerful ice enhanced haymaker to the jawline of one Wendy Marvell. Plummeting and crash landing went Wendy, skidding harshly across the ground as she released a cry of pain.

"Wendy!" Charla shouted in concern, watching on with the rest of the guild.

"She's okay." Natsu reassured, but as he said so, Waiston was already blitzing towards her with his follow up attack. Landing harshly on the ground, on his feet, he landed in a crouch before inhaling the air around him.

"A roar!" Gray shouted.

"No..." Erza corrected.

"Blinding Song...of the Frozen Dragon!"

Tilting his head backwards and releasing all of the air he inhaled, Waiston created a thick, icy mist that covered nearly half of the area. Soon, everyone became blind to what was taking place inside the now misty battlefield. That included Wendy, who was now trapped inside.

"I can't see a thing!" She shouted, looking around for either an exit or for an incoming Waiston. She received the latter, as glowing yellow eyes appeared behind her, Wendy turned right into a powerful kick to her abdomen, sending the girl tumbling across the ground again as she skidded to a painful stop.

"Kch!" She groaned as those yellow eyes disappeared. Wendy struggled up to her feet, holding her stomach as she tried to calm herself. "Come on Wendy..! You might not be able to see him, but you're a Dragon Slayer! Listen! Sniff him out!" She pep talked herself, trying her best to bring words to fruition as she closed her eyes. Sniffing at first, ears perking second, Wendy's eyes shot open as yellow hues appeared right beside her for another powerful kick. This time however, Wendy ducked under the incoming blow.

"Roar of the..."

"Sly girl...!" Waiston complimented as he missed the kick.

"Sky Dragon!" From a point blank range, Wendy fired a powerful Sky Dragon's Roar directly into Waiston's chest, sending him high into the air as he yelled out in immense pain. Though he was thrown upward, the mist didn't move, still hindering Wendy's eye sight. "Huh...I need more strength then!" She said, spreading her arms as she began to glow. "O strengthen of arm to cleave the Heavens! Arms!"

Glowing a bright blue, Wendy's attack power greatly rose. With her newfound strength, the little Dragon Slayer took in a deep breath once more, trying her technique yet again.

"Roar..."

"Roar..."

It seems like a recovering Waiston had the same idea, chest inflating like a balloon as he prepared to fire his own oral blast.

"Of the Sky/Frozen Dragon!" Simultaneously they fired, Wendy's roar sweeping the the icy mist up along with it as it rushed towards Waiston in a cyclonic fashion. The two roars collided, and not even seconds later, the mixture of frozen mist and Sky magic proved to be the stronger of the two, easily pushing past Waiston's Roar.

"She's got him!" Levy shouted.

"Go, Wendy!" Natsu added on. "This is your CHANCE!"

Grin inducing were their chants, as Waiston began letting off an Icy blue...and then a Sky blue aura. It caught a few of the mages' eyes, but as Waiston seemingly became consumed by Wendy's powerful roar, some still cried out.

"Waiston!" Kuro shouted. "She used his own mist against him!" He added, biting on his own lip in worry.

"Come on now Kuro." Reve added with a smirk. Kuro turned to him confused. "I can't believe someone as talented as you missed it. Look again."

"A direct hit!" Lucy shouted, throwing arms into the air.

"Not quite." Gildarts replied, bursting the blonde's bubble. "Huh?" She looked up, eyes widening in disbelief as the mass amount of Sky and Ice magic began swirling into one giant orb. A second later, that giant orb of the combined magic began to raise even higher, slowly revealing an unscathed Waiston Tunundra as two different shades of blue radiated from his body.

"Ya forced it outta me faster than I wanted, but this is where it falls for ya, Wendy!" He boasted as Lucy covered her mouth, turning back to Wendy with concern. "Frozen Sky Mode."

Gray huffed in annoyance. "Wendy doesn't have a dual mode, and Sky is her element, so that's all she can throw at him. This wasn't the smartest idea."

"She'll be fine!" Charla yelled, not taking her eyes off Wendy. The distaste in her tone from Gray's words were highly evident however and Gray turned his sights to Charla, feeling bad for what he just said seconds after. He then nodded. "Yeah, my bad. She'll definitely be okay."

Glaring towards Waiston, Wendy watched carefully as he continued to hold that giant ball of magic over his head. As she held her ground, a pinkish aura overcame her. Her hair began to waver upwards, flashing a pinkish color as well.

"Say goodnight!" Waiston yelled, tossing the giant ball of Sky and Ice magic Wendy's way.

"This is what you wanted." She said to herself. "He skipped right past his Ice Drive and into the Frozen Sky Mode. If I can take him out here... but it's going to take everything I have. Everything... I have!"

At the end of her statement, Wendy yelled at the top of her lungs as an influx of magic shot everywhere, rattling the Earth she stood upon. The winds around herself and Waiston began to pick up drastically as the Sky Dragon entered her Dragon Force. In an instant, Wendy was gone from sight, completely avoiding the incoming ball of Sky and Ice that slammed into the ground — violently exploding into bits and pieces upon impact.

"Kehe! That's what I want!" Waiston shouted, never taking his eyes off the last place Wendy was seen; the ground. "Show me..." He began, gradually shifting his descending frame around. As he picked up speed in his turn, Waiston led now with his right foot. Swinging it, his foot then became coated in ice, visible wind wrapping around the icy coating as well. "...The full extent of your Dragon Force!" Completing is one-eighty, Waiston's kick which at first seemed like was aimed for nothing but air, collided with an appearing Wendy, fist to foot. The power of Sky and Ice against Sky alone, only enhanced by Dragon Force — a harsh stalemate seemed to be the result of this collision. But, the longer Wendy held on to this struggle, the more she felt her right arm shiver in coldness. With a flurry of icy wind flowing every which way, Wendy could now feel her entire body becoming numb. Even on the sidelines, the Icy Wind's visibility impressed onlookers.

"Whoa whoa there." Bacchus commented with a laugh. "I'm getting chills from here just looking at that blizzard! Wendy doesn't stand a chance!"

"She can still do it!" Chelia yelled out, causing him to leer her way. "Believe in Wendy! She'll win it!"

"That's the thing here kid." He said, slowly placing his gourd down whilst never taking his eyes off the fight.

"I ain't believing in anything here. I'm neutral. Didn't ya hear Hibiki? It wouldn't be wild for us to root for Fairy Tail like White Eclipse are the bad guys. They're just as much allies as Erza and the others, and you know it too. So to pick a favorite, a man like me can't do it. I understand since you and Wendy are the Sky Sisters or whatever, but the rest of us, well, most or some of us, are just here for the throw down! So believe in who ya want, but Wendy ain't getting any supporting strength from us! She's on her own now, not including her own guild, of course."

"..." Chelia looked around, seeing nothing but agreeing faces as she slowly slumped into a saddened expression, turning back to the fight at hand.

"I...it's too cold!" She stammered, her arm showing signs of actual ice growing upon her limbs.

"Waiston's in full control." Adamantine said with full confidence. "If she has a trick up her sleeve, she's going to use it soon. If he survives that, then he wins, absolute."

Now, overpowering the little Dragon Slayer, Waiston pushed through with his kick, slamming it against Wendy's now frozen right limb, sending her flying towards the ground. She hit the ground hard, immediately attempting to push herself off the ground once she slammed into the earth. Pain coursing through her frame, Wendy coughed vigorously as she remained on her hands and knees. With her entire right arm still frozen, it just made it much harder for her to push herself off the ground.

"I cant... I'm not going to die fighting him...so I can't just quit and look for Natsu-San or Erza-San to come save me. I have to..—"

"WENDY LOOK OUT!" Erza shouted at the top of her lungs, but just before Wendy could even look up to see what the warning was about, Waiston appeared in the most brutal way possible, landing directly on top of the Sky Dragon Slayer with his right foot covered in Ice once more. His plummet was filled with so much velocity, that when he landed directly on Wendy's spine, she could only let out a silent cry as her frame pressed into the ground, creating a small yet deep crater from impact. Literally right after, flames covered The Salamander's body as he tried his hardest to remain still, arms folded as he glared a hole through Waiston. "Natsu..." Lucy whimpered, watching on as Waiston turned to his direction with a grin — enjoying riling up the opposing team.

"You sleep?" He asked her, turning back to Wendy who laid under his shoe. He raised his leg, only to notice a squirming Dragon Slayer underneath. Waiston then sighed. "I don't enjoy beating up on girls ya know, but you don't wanna stay down, and the rules say you gotta quit or I gotta knock ya out so..." Waiston raised his leg higher, and then threw it down with velocity once more. The Icy stomp was powerful enough to send his leg through the earth itself in small hole. That's mostly because he missed his point blank target. "Huh!?" Bewildered, he looked around for the missing Wendy Marvell, unable to find her until it was too late. She appeared right above him, hovering as she then began wafting for the winds of change.

"Secret Dragon Slayer Art!"

"Here comes that trick up her sleeve." Adam reiterated as the others became worrisome. "Shattering Light: Sky Drill!" As she called forth her attack, Wendy flipped upside down with her arms spread. Following right after, Wendy swung her arms in a counter clockwise manner, creating a spiraling wind wall around Waiston as her winds also easily shattered the ice that encased her right arm.

"Heh! I'll just eat this! It's no use for you!" He boasted, but before he could begin inhaling, Wendy appeared in a flash before the cocky Slayer, slamming a hard, brunt uppercut to his abdomen. Wide eyed, Waiston folded over, holding his stomach with his left hand and the ground to keep himself up with his right.

With the White Eclipse Mage temporarily subdued, Wendy then extended her arms to her sides once again. This time, she spun them clockwise, and the winds that trapped Waiston shot downward, pressuring down on his back with an amazing force.

"What...what the fuck...!? I can't move!" Waiston groaned out, struggling to even stay on his hands and knees, let alone push up. Strong enough to keep Waiston immobilized, Wendy nodded once before crouching and then leaping high into the air with the help of her Wind Magic.

"Her Sky Drill, but upside down!" Lucy exclaimed in awe. "Instead of using her winds to throw her opponent in the air.."

"She using her Wind Magic to hold him down!" Carla shouted, adding on. "Go Wendy! Finish him right here!"

As she ascended into the clouds, Chelia watched on with a huge smile as she understood what was coming. "She's going to do it!" The God Slayer spoke, clenching both of her first in excitement. "GO! WENDY!"

Finally, at the peak of her ascension, just past the clouds, Wendy took a deep breath before descending once more; right foot leading the way, wrapped with a large amount of Sky Dragon Slaying Magic, Wendy was locked on to her target, plummeting towards him through her own drill like an ice seeking missile.

"This is it! This is for Fairy Tail! First Sky Arrow!"

"GOOOO!" - Chelia

"Waiston you dolt! Get up!" Kairi shouted. "This is it..." Cygnus assessed. "Mhm." Adam nodded in agreement.

"Come on..." Jaxon whispered, tapping his foot as he crossed his arms, watching Wendy quickly descend. "Come on.." He said a bit louder as the rest of Fairy Tail continued cheering for the incoming Wendy.

"Come on!" He this time yelled. "If you're gonna lose to some wind then take off that Dragon Scale Coat your Dragon made you! You're the one who controls the ice and sky right?! That's all I hear from you now! So where's it at, Waiston!"

Grimacing, Waiston then chuckled as he continued to try and push up to no avail.

"...Sorry for lying...Jaxon. It seems I don't control the sky after all...

But..."

Waiston removed his hand from his stomach, pressing it against the ground with his other. Once both hands were pressed against the ground, and icy blue suddenly shot out from his being, freezing a large radius of the ground around him as it then...

"...I do indeed, control the Ice. Frozen Dragon's Clear Domain..!"

...At that point of his exclamation, Waiston yelled at the top his lungs, and suddenly, the Sky Drill Wendy created...froze. Intangible air, freezing, becoming a beautiful tower of solid ice — crystallizing as it sparkled in the morning sun.

Chelia stood quietly, speechless. She hadn't moved an inch as she looked on in utter disbelief. Bacchus then slowly turned his eyes to her, raising a brow in a condescending manner, not that she was paying attention.

"He froze...air." Natsu said, observing the unbelievable.

"Wendy's inside there..." Erza murmured, staring at the icy structure that soon began to crack. As it finally broke apart, it wasn't for the structure to fall, no, but to reveal Wendy Marvell herself, frozen solid and unconscious.

"WENDY!" - Natsu

"Wendy Marvell is unable to compete any longer! The winner is Waiston Tunundra!"

Suddenly, an uproar was heard from the White Eclipse roster. Reve grinning as the others celebrated Waiston's victory, Waiston began walking away from his creation, snapping his fingers and causing it to crumble as Wendy fell from the height.

"Wendy!" Natsu and Charla yelled as The Salamander darted towards her to catch her. Someone had beat him to the punch however, and as Wendy laid in his arms, he merely glared Waiston's way as the Dragon Slayer kept walking away to his celebrating teammates.

"Natsu..." He said, turning to him with his arms extended for him to take Wendy. "Please, keep her warm until she wakes up. And also..."

Jellal then turned back to the battlefield where Arcturus's person perked up once he realized who was on his way to the meeting spot. Arc took to the air with a single leap, landing in the midst of the battlefield as Jellal angrily coated himself in Heavenly Body Magic that shook the arena to its core.

"...Leave Fairy Tail's first win to me."

Right there, the third match had been decided. It was the Outcast versus the only remaining Demon.

"Mages ready!?"

"Begin!"


	4. Chapter 4: A Demon's Cry To Heaven

Chapter 4: A Demon's Cry to Heaven

"Hey! How ya feeling?" Jaxon asked once Waiston finally reached his team. Smiling and waving, he slid his hands back into the pockets of his Dragon scaled jacket once asked, giving a shrug. "Nothing a bit of ice can't fix. Like I told her when we were fighting. She's quick, but her attacks lack aggression, so she was barely doing any damage."

"It looked like she almost had you." Heather added with a sly smirk, to which Waiston merely shook his head, laughing. "That Sky Arrow thing? I would have survived it, trust me!"

"Okay but freezing air?" Selene asked with a raised brow. "We pulling off illogical miracles now?"

"Coming from you of all people Selene, that's a vote of confidence for me!" Cheesing, Waiston turned to sit down on a large glacier of ice he just created, sitting with his legs folded in as he stretched out the soreness from his battle. "Welp guys, we're now three and oh!"

"Two and oh." Cygnus corrected. Waiston then corrected again himself. "Three. Arc is up."

Cygnus nodded with a grin. "Point taken."

"Hey!" The gunslinger yelled, capturing everyone's attention, but the world knew who he was calling for. "How long are you going to hide behind your guild!? They're slowly slipping by the numbers, Erza! Aren't you going to save them!? Or are you aware that the second you step into that ring, that it's another loss for Fairy Tail!?"

"I'm going next." She steamed, glaring towards then raven haired S class Mage of Fairy Tail.

"No you're not." Laxus would rebuttal. "The last thing we need, is for you to lose, not because he was better, but because he was in your head before your match had even started. Sit back. You'll know when it's your time. Besides, every match so far, White Eclipse has initiated the matchup, but I haven't seen Reve eager to make his way to the battlefield yet. Stop falling into the mind games."

"You're right." She said after taking a deep breath to calm down. "Let's just keep doing what we're doing, and root for Jellal. We'll turn this thing around yet!"

Natsu was all for it, shouting "YEAH!" With a fist in the air before cupping his hands around his mouth to yell. "Alright Jellal, kick his ass! We need him down right here!"

"We need all three of them down if we wanna stand a chance." Gildarts thought to himself, scanning his eyes at the three targets he was internally speaking off. "Arcturus, Adamantine...and of course, Sidney Castle."

"Mages ready!?" An understatement of a question. The golden aura around Jellal continued to cause the Earth beneath them to rumble as Arcturus stood rock steady. Arcturus, the last remaining Demon, fully converted to a White Eclipse Mage once again. With his pitch black shaggy hair slowly wavering upwards, a blackened aura began to manifest around his person. Grin slowly emerging, Arcturus then addressed the Heavenly Body Mage before him.

"It's too bad killing isn't allowed, huh? I'd love to tear you limb from limb, Jellal."

Standing in his erupting aura of gold, Jellal himself managed a grin of his own. "It sounds like you're not fully converted back to a good guy, Arcturus. You're not still holding a grudge on what happened back during Tartarus, are you?"

"Don't get me wrong." The demon replied. "I'm more than satisfied...being back by Takeru's side. That doesn't excuse the way I got here, though."

The longer the two stood before each other with their erupting auras, the more the trembling around them picked up — Arcturus and Jellal unaffected, yet most of the bystanders bracing themselves as they waited for what could be the most explosive fight so far.

Slowly, Arc pointed a finger Jellal's way as the aura around him picked up. A heinous look upon the Demon's features as he once more called out to the former criminal. "This time, the Oracion Seis won't be here to save you! I'll crush you!"

"Go!"

"Meteor!" Jellal exclaimed, and in a flash, the blue haired male left his position, soaring right past the unmoving Arcturus only to swoop around with his right fist cocked back. With bandaged eyes constricting his eye sight, the anticipating Demon's ears perked as Jellal passed him. As Jellal then swung his first punch, a simple head tilt to the side avoided the Heavenly Body Punch. Nonchalant, yet without hesitation, with Jellal within a close proximity, Arc simply raised his right fist for a back-fist that slammed directly into Jellal's nose. With his momentum sending him forward, yet his head snapping back, Jellal went into a tumbling mess — recovering finally as he skidded to a stop on one knee — right hand holding his already damaged nose from the single punch. A toothy grin then appeared upon Arcturus's features.

"Bow."

The Demon's demand only riled Jellal up as he took off in Meteor once again, rushing towards Arcturus at full speed. Once he reached melee range, a plethora of punches were thrown, each from Jellal aiming for Arcturus's head. Parrying a few, the Darkness Demon continued to easily evade the rest of them — finally retaliating with yet another hard punch — this time to the top of Jellal's skull. The force from the punch sent the former criminal into the ground, the impact from his face first fall causing a crater the shape of Jellal's own face.

"A damned monster!" Bickslow shouted as he watched the one-sided fight commencing. "Demon..." Gray corrected as he sighed at the sight of Jellal being manhandled for the match's start. "But don't count Jellal out yet. He can turn this around I'm sure."

"He will!" Natsu shouted, yet baring his teeth in concern at the battlefield.

"Come on. I haven't even expelled any magic yet." Arc boasted as he raised his right leg. He went for a stomp to Jellal's back, but the Crime Sorcerer leader was able to roll out the way just in time, causing the demon to hit nothing but earth. "Hm?" He hummed as Jellal took to the air in his Meteor once again. Soaring high into the sky, Jellal placed his left hand upon his right forearm. From his now open right palm, the Heavenly Body Mage fired off a large beam of raw heavenly magic that now fired towards an unmoving Arcturus. He stared as he beam rushed towards him, as if he could physically see what was heading for him. Finally, another grin appeared upon his features as Arc remained still — the beam of magic exploding upon contact and creating a large cloud of smoke and debris.

"Direct hit!" Lucy shouted. She then suddenly dropped the charade as she sighed. "At least? That's what I would say, if it were true."

Everyone was aware. It was no surprise, and as the smoke cleared, Arcturus was seen surrounded by a bubble of Darkness Demon magic. It perfectly shielded him.

"A distraction, huh!?" Arc shouted with perking ears. He then turned around completely, facing a blindsiding Jellal who swung his left, heavenly fist for Arc's jawline. The demon was able to avoid once more, but a connection was still made, though just a grazing knuckle against his opposing cheek. It caused him to flinch.

"You're open!" Jellal yelled, now swinging for the fences with an uppercut that started at the hip, aiming for the underside of Arc's chin.

"Don't get cocky!" Arc shouted in return. He leaned back to avoid the incoming uppercut, but to his surprise, Jellal halted his swing simultaneously to the action. "Feint?" He questioned, but eyebrows then rose in disbelief as Jellal opened his palm, right hand clasped against his forearm once more as he fired a powerful blast of Heavenly Magic directly into the sternum of the Demon of White Eclipse.

"Now that's a direct hit!" Lucy shouted with a fist pump as Arcturus was sent flying, crashing into the ground with an explosive result. Gradually as the smoke began to clear, Arc's silhouette became visible, the demon standing up slowly as he dusted himself off. A bit bruised, the White Eclipse member turned bandaged eyes back to he former criminal. "I didn't believe it at first..." He began, walking towards Jellal at a stalking pace. "...But after everything we've all been through, it's undoubtable proof. Having resolve and a reason to fight to live...it does make you stronger. Humans have really showcased such a strength over time. It's the one thing our enemies lacked, even me at one time..."

As Arc continued to walk forward, Jellal kept a readied stance, cautiously waiting for any attack to spring forth. But...Arc continued on. "You...you built your entire strength...your entire magic core around redeeming yourself for the sins you've created and the crimes you committed. How noble. But now that they're all gone, what are you now? Me however..." He stopped walking, raising a hand to clench it before his own blinded sights. "I'm the exact opposite. I fought for no reason besides bloodshed and despair. That's all I wanted to see. That's not resolve, no. But then, that scrawny Dragon Slayer saved me. Not once, but twice. So what does this even mean?" Lingering on the question, a pitch black light began to shine through his clenched fist. "It means I've chosen, Jellal!" Cackling ensued, so maniacal that those who heard would have thought Arcturus was still evil if they didn't know better. "When Takeru freed me from Tartarus, I had he option to go wherever I wanted! I could have been wandering the world, remaining a myth to those lucky to catch a glimpse of the last remaining demon! But instead...instead, I found my resolve in Takeru and White Eclipse!" As the demon shouted, the black light in his fist became bright exponentially. "I've chosen to protect that scrawny Dragon Slayer and his...our family's pride and wellbeing no matter the cost! So what is your strength compared to MINE!"

Upon his exclamation, Arc finally took action, raising his glowing fist into the air. "Darkness Demon's Erupting Fist!" The Demon himself then slammed his fist into the ground, a small hole just the size of his balled up hand. A full second of nothing passed before finally, the ground beneath Jellal began to erupt in black lights shining through the increasing crack formation within the earth before finally exploding in a massive eruption.

Panting heavily just from the shock and close call, Jellal somehow made it out by the skin of his teeth — the blue haired male now floating high in the air above all the chaos. "Too close...I was almost finished.." He murmured to himself.

"Don't worry, Jellal. You'll definitely be finished soon!" Arc replied, causing Jellal to widen his eyes. "He can hear me from way up here!?"

"Loud and clear!" Arcturus shouted, crouching low to the ground. As he did, familiar long black wings protruded from his back, spreading far before flapping once; Arcturus rocketing into the air at a breakneck pace.

Unable to avoid in time, Jellal looked on in shock as blood trickled from his forced open mouth. A powerful right punch dug deep into his abdomen, causing the crimson to leak from his mouth and fall like raindrops back to the ground.

"Ouch..." Bacchus cringed. "I'm pretty sure that's the first sign-a bloodshed from fists, yeah? Wild."

"FOUR!"

"Just as I thought. He's having trouble alone." A familiar voice said, causing Bacchus to turn around with an arched brow until he put the faces together. "Heh, I was wondering if his posse was gonna show to root him on." The drunk said, now looking towards Midnight, Cobra, Hot Eye, Racer, Angel, and Meredy. Cobra smirked, arms folded as he kept his one eye upon the match. "I could hear him losing on the way here...but don't think he's done. There's still plenty Jellal has left, and that Demon won't see it coming. I don't mean that literally."

Bacchus then turned back around to continue enjoying the fight. "I like it! Let's see the outcome then!"

Jellal fell to the ground, just barely catching himself as he landed on all fours in a deep crouch. Now, holding his stomach, he turned his pained sights back to the flying demon above, squinting to focus his blurred visage. A powerful punch to the gut did that much to him, proving once more that Arcturus was a dominant fighter when it came to pure strength. Slowly, he took in as much air as he could with each breath; dying for recovery, for a second wind. At the same time, his mind began racing in a bit of a panic.

"He's really this strong. It's a whole different thing to fight him on my own. Without Macbeth here to deflect his magic, or Erik to call out his attacks...Richard can't slow him down for me with his earth..." Coming to what seemed like a realization, small grin appeared on Jellal's features. "He's extremely powerful. He'd be nothing but trouble for Fairy Tail if I don't defeat him here...—" Slowly his head raised as Arc began swooping towards him like an osprey. " — so that means I have to defeat him, even if it means I go down too..!"

Keep his smirk manifested, Jellal began glowing once more, activating his Meteor spell. Just before Arc could reach him, Jellal took off into the air once again, high near the stratosphere. "Oh no you don't!" Arcturus yelled, slamming his feet into the ground for a fast landing, only to launch into the air once again, directly behind Jellal. With this, the blue haired mage stopped on a dime, gradually pulling his hands together — on top of each other with the middle and index finger erected. "Be judged by the seven stars, Demon." From just above, seven magic seals appeared hovering over Jellal. It caused Arc to give a wicked grin as he continued to pursue him. "Give it all you got, criminal!"

"Gladly. Grand Chariot!"

From those seven magic seals that outlined he constellation "The Big Dipper," a massive amount of heavenly light began raining down past Jellal, all aimed for Arcturus. At first the demon's eyes widened, yet in that same second, his surprise at the more powerful Grand Chariot he's ever faced, turned into excited features as the demon began acrobatically flying through the air to avoid what he could. The closer the gap between himself and Jellal became however, the more abundant and powerful the Grand Chariot was, and soon, Arcturus was being pelted by the heavy rain of heavenly light — just as he reached out for Jellal's throat, inches away before the onslaught began. Somehow, Jellal Fernandes was able to remain focused despite the sharp claws of Arcturus less than inches away from sinking into his neck.

The action didn't escape everyone's eyes however, as Gildarts further delved. "They're really after each other. I mean, really after each other."

"That's a vague way to put it." Laxus added. "Arcturus was actually about to tear Jellal's throat out from him. And that Grand Chariot..I'm sure he's depleting his magic right now, because that's the strongest Grand Chariot I've ever seen from him. These two, no matter how much each guild has gotten under each other's skin, may have the most hate for each other, and I don't even know why."

Arc crashed hard to the ground, but the Grand Chariot had no sign of letting up. The rain of heavenly light continued relentlessly, smashing into the ground directly where White Eclipse's demon crash landed, exploding on top of explosions of Jellal's magic. In the air, Jellal could be seen panting heavily as it continued. "Hey...Hey!" Erza yelled, causing his ears to perk. "I know..." He whispered. "But it has to be done—"

Immediately he was cut off by what sounded like a primal like scream. Suddenly, a powerful output of blackened aura manifested from where Arcturus landed during his fall, followed by an explosion of raw magic power that blew away the remaining of the Grand Chariot, causing Jellal to stop.

"There's no way!" He yelled out, exhausted as he touched down back to the ground.

"Yes!" Reve yelled, pumping his fist as the rest of White Eclipse could see the winged silhouette of The Demon, Arcturus through the cloud of smoke. As it cleared, he appeared heavily damaged, but his facial expression showed no signs of grievance or pain...just anger.

"Putting all of your hopes into one attack.. how foolish against a Demon with resolve." He murmured just loud enough for everyone to hear. The former criminal clenched his teeth in annoyance and frustration as Arc began inhaling the air around him. Along with said action, the earth beneath them began to tremble the longer he inhaled.

"He just got done calling him out for depleting his magic, but he's about to do the same!?" Hibiki asked, utterly confused from the sidelines. That's when Cobra laughed. "You see a devastating attack coming and you believe he's using all that he has? This is why you're an extra." That's when Angel gave him a look. "Hey, just who's side are you on?"

"Darkness...—"

"Now!" Jellal yelled, sliding back as he crossed his arms like an "X" over his head. Natsu and Erza's eyes then widened at the familiar stance as a flashback to The Tower of Heaven appeared in their minds. "Is he really?" Natsu asked, unsure how to feel as the shadows around Jellal and Arcturus began to pull towards the former criminal.

"Demon's..."

Soon, a small, black orb formed just above Jellal's ascended arms, growing in size rapidly. It grew a core of small white lights, resembling a clear night sky.

"Screech!" Finally, after enough accumulation, Arcturus fired off a ginormous beam of Darkness Demon Magic that shot towards Jellal like a laser. Simultaneously however..

"Altairis!" Jellal swung his arms down, firing off the large, blackened ball directly towards the incoming Demon's cry. The impending connection happened dead center of the battlefield, causing everyone to hold on for balance. Altairis and The Demon's Screech battling for control and domination, but as Arc had to hold form for his attack to continue, Jellal was relieved from his, allowing him to slowly spread his stance a bit wider as he took on yet another familiar pose — one that caused the Oracion Seis to both grin...and cringe.

"Do it, ya softy! Don't let him escape!" Cobra yelled out from where he stood. Jellal didn't need confirmation, but the voice of one of his comrades definitely gave him the push he needed. Dark clouds began to circle from above, leaving an opening in the middle like a cyclone.

"It's your choice, Arcturus." Jellal said with harmful intent in his visage. "You said that I don't have the resolve anymore, Arcturus!? You're wrong! My sins may have been washed away, but my concern for Erza and her friends will forever remain.. and since I volunteered to represent Fairy Tail today, that means their hopes and ambitions, at this moment, are on my shoulders. Do you think I'd let that fall before me!? Underestimating me will be your downfall today, Demon of White Eclipse! Now, the choice is yours! Fall to Altairis, or Sema!"

As he yelled out the True Heavenly Body spell, a magic Meteor forced its way out of the opening above, causing the entire area to tremble and break apart as it entered the atmosphere, rushing directly towards Arcturus.

"Arcturus!" Takeru shouted out, quickly standing up with both fists clenched as he watched on worriedly.

"Annoying..." Brows raised as Arc spoke calmly through his breath like attack. Soon, the Demon's Screech would shut off, giving Altairis an open path. Arc simply stood up once more, huffing once in annoyance as his right hand slowly raised. "Your attacks, your boasting; all annoying chants. Why can't you just take your defeat like you're supposed to?!" As he released his grief, Arc reached up, and grabbed the bandages that concealed his eyes. "You think you can just make this up as you go along, Jellal? Their hopes and ambitions? This is a fight to prove which guild is once and for all the strongest in Fiore. What ambition and hope does this provide!? None, so now, I'll expose this lie you're living in!" As he yelled, Arc ripped the bandages off with one pull. Right after, his eyes shot open, revealing his reddish pupils. Suddenly, like a sickness, everyone watching could feel the tremendous spike in magic power radiating from the Demon. "I'll show you something I haven't shown someone like you since I was with Tartarus. I'll show you, despair. Demon...Drive!"

In one notion, the plethora of magic seeping from Arcturus shot out like an explosion, yet receding back to him to just an outline around his frame. Still, the effect was still there, and the rise in abilities could still be felt from all around. Now, focusing his magic into his hands, Arcturus placed both hands out forward, catching Altairis bare handed as he continuously slid backwards from the force. As this happened, Jellal's jaw dropped open, the ex criminal shaking in fear and disbelief as Arc slowly reared back his left arm, clenching a fist covered in Darkness Magic. "HERE! TAKE BACK YOUR PATHETIC NIGHT SKY!" He yelled at the top of his lungs as he swung his left fist forward, slamming it into Altairis with immeasurable force. Just like he proclaimed, Arcturus indeed went the spell flying back towards Jellal at twice the speed.

"I-Impossible!" Jellal shouted in a stammer, shaking, wide and timid eyed. "Jellal! Move!" Erza and the others shouted variably, but it was apparent that he couldn't out of sheer disbelief. That's when a massive explosion of his own magic took place, covering a large radius with where Jellal stood being the center point of it all.

"JELLAL!" Concern from Titania reigned louder than anyone else's. Arc slowly turned his sights upwards now, as Sema was just directly above him, yet he treated the situation as just another below average spell. "It'd be a shame to have a draw because I underestimated this thing, so I'll make sure it's gone."

Arcturus then slightly crouched, spreading both arms out as a Dark Magic began to manifest and swirl into a giant orb in each hand. Soon, slamming his hands together, the two dark orbs joined together to create one giant one just before Arc himself. Holding it waist-side, The Demon licked his lips past his jagged teeth as his tongue hung from mouth. "Darkness Demon's Hammer!"

"He's planning on taking the Meteor on!?" Lucy shouted in shock, confusion, and hope — hope that he wouldn't succeed, for such a positive result for Arcturus would paint an obvious picture of despair for Fairy Tail to know that he had survived to fight another round.

"There's no way!" Gray shouted as well, but Arc was now out to prove them wrong as he released a war cry from the top of his lungs, swinging his connected fists towards the falling meteor known as Sema. Connection was made, followed by a struggle between the two attacks, Sema and the Demon's Hammer. The struggle caused Arcturus to dig his feet into the ground, deepening the crater with each passing second as the outcome was still unclear. That's when Takeru shouted once again.

"This is it! Jellal is gone! All you have to do is survive! Give it everything, ARCTURUS!"

Grinning at his friend's voice, Arc simply replied to himself. "Of course you idiot...I wouldn't give it any less for my comrades! I'LL TAKE THIS WIN!"

As he exclaimed and proclaimed his victory, his words came to fruition as Sema began to crack viciously. The cracks took over the entire meteor until finally, it exploded harmlessly, falling to the ground in sparkling pieces as Arc stood in the midst of the falling rock.

The second everyone realized that Sema was no more, an uproar of cheers came from nearly everyone in White Eclipse except for Sidney and Adam. Disbelief and despair was painted just as vividly on the faces of the Fairy Tail mages. Arc stood gloriously, grinning as his Demon Drive wore out and left him completely. "That's three." He said, turning his back to walk towards his guild.

"YOU IDIOT!" Adamantine yelled.

"TURN AROUND!" Sidney added. The confusion caused Arcturus to hesitate, but as he turned just as informed, a heavily battered and bruised, bloodied Jellal launched himself directly into the Demon, hugging him tightly as a vaguely familiar purple marking appeared on his chest and back.

"Jellal...JELLAL STOP!" Erza shouted, attempting to run out onto the field, yet only to be grabbed by Gildarts. He smiled, shaking his head once. "He knows better. It's going to hurt, but he won't go that far...but he's going far enough!"

"What're you saying! He's going to kill himself!" Erza debated, knowing exactly what she was looking at when she saw the purple markings on his body. Gildarts simply replied. "Just watch. I wouldn't stop you if otherwise.."

"What're you doing!? And how are you still standing after that attack!?" Arc shouted, trying to shake Jellal off of him. Wiggling his right arm free, he tried to manifest some magic, but nothing appeared. "Tch! I may have ran out of magic, but I can still pummel you into the ground!"

That's when Jellal smiled. "It's a shame, I didn't expect to end this between us like this.. but Fairy Tail needs the momentum push. Square of Self Destruction."

"Of what!?" Arc shouted, now trying his damnedest to break free of Jellal's hold though to no avail. Soon, Jellal began a purplish glow, remaining attached to Arc as he smiled. "It looks like you underestimated me just enough, huh? I can't defeat you one on one, but the thing is, I'm never alone. Not anymore. When we wake up, let's keep rooting for our friends, alright?"

"DON'T TALK TO ME LIKE YOU'VE WON! GET OFF ME YOU COWARD! NO! NO—"

The massive explosion occurred, consuming the entire arena. "JELLAL!"

"ARCTURUS!"

Members from each respective guild ran over as the smoke cleared, only to find the two unconscious, breathing, just unmoving. "Tch!" Reve sucked his teeth loudly as Arc's eyes slowly opened. "Damn, I didn't see it coming either, so I can't say anything!"

"Jellal! You idiot! Are you insane!?" Erza shouted as they grabbed him, lifting him up to carry him. "S...Sorry..." He said with a pained smile. "But." Natsu interjected with a wide grin and a thumbs up. Behind him were the smiling faces of Fairy Tail, some eager and some just happy he's alive. "You've given us the momentum we needed! We're going to take this now!"

"Momentum?" Takeru questioned. "It was a double knockout. We're still up, three to one!"

"Don't forget that one point when it's all said and done!" One Sting from Sabertooth shouted from far away, reminiscent from what Gajeel told him back in the Grand Magic Games. Ignoring him however, Takeru took a step forward, glaring down Natsu Dragneel as Jellal and Arc were carried away with their teams. "Step forward Dragneel. I'll show you how momentum is still on our side!"

Before Natsu could give the obvious answer however...

"Oi oi oi now, Takeru." Takeru turned to see the brunette walking towards him. His voice also caused a certain brunette's ears to perk, stopping in her tracks as she waited for confirmation.

"Huh? Come on Jack. I'm ready." Takeru begged in a monotone. "Sorry bud. I rarely do this, but I'll have to use my chain of command here and tell you to back down. I don't really get excited for fights but.." As his face was shown, Jack Royal held a near menacing grin, his flask dangling from his left hand as he glared towards Fairy Tail. "That last show got me riled up, so let me use this energy while I have it."

"So be it!" She shouted, pushing by Natsu with her left arm. Cana Alberona stood before Jack Royal with her own excited grin. "Is your opponent of course, and I'll keep this train rolling for Fairy Tail!"

"So that settles it." Calium spoke with Makarov nodding. "With White Eclipse up three to one, the next match will be Jack Royal, vs. Cana Alberona!" The two remained standing across from each other as the rest cleared the area. Earthen colored eyes staring Cana down, she returned the glare with her own grinning exhibition.

"You both ready!?"


	5. Chapter 5: The Drinking Game

Chapter 5: The Drinking Game

"Hm?" He stirred awake, slowly rising up only to be met with a fist to the top of his head. Not really phased by the blow, Arcturus looked up to his now seated position to spot a comically seething Takeru. "The hell is wrong with you!? Didn't you always tell me to never let your guard down? Then how did you do such a thing, allowing Jellal to blow himself up against ya like that!? Huh!?"

Arc simply stared, now remembering all that happened as he rubbed the back of his head. "Oh yeah, I lost..." That's when Selene interjected. "No, it was a draw. We still got the point, but so did they."

"That doesn't make me feel any better." He said, rising back to his feet slowly, pushing past his aching muscles and joints that popped. "My bad, Takeru. I slipped, but that doesn't mean you can too."

"I know that, idiot." Tak said, turning away from him with crossed arms. "...It's good that Jellal isn't suicidal. All that talk you two were doing during the fight really had us worried that one of you would actually try a crazy stunt —"

"— A CRAZY STUNT LIKE THAT!" Erza yelled at the top of her lungs, being held back by some of Fairy Tail's side members as she slung a right fist to the back of Jellal's head, reaching for more. Jellal, now hiding behind Shadow Gear's Droy, began waving in surrender, a knot visible on the back of his head. "I-it's okay! I reduced the self-destruction spell knowingly! I wasn't going to kill mys—" Smack! Erza quickly freed herself of Max and Warren's grasp and slammed a right fist to his nose before grabbed again. "You want to die so badly!?" She yelled, "I'll help you this time!"

"Is anyone going to help us!? Warren yelled, feet dragging into the dirt. The main cast of guild members all then looked away, even Laxus and Mira who faked a separate conversation off to the side. Not even Gildarts would get involved physically, laughing at the situation. "Well, you can't blame her." Was all he could muster, causing Jellal to slump over in defeat. "But let's get back to focusing...ON MY PRECIOUS DAUGHTER CANA! LETS GO CANA! DADDY'S WATCHING! DO YOUR BEST!"

"Sh-shut up! Ya shitty old man!" She retorted, loudly, causing a comical hurt from a frozen in place Gildarts. Turning back to her opponent however, after sighing to relieve herself of any distraction, she slowly bent her knees, placing a hand on her deck of cards as Jack remained up right, flask still dangling from his hand.

"Well, it's about time, right? It's too bad we can't solve this in a drinking game, huh Cana?" He shrugged cockily. "Well, a fight or drinking, I'd win either way, since I already proved the latter."

Though she was kind of annoyed at Jack's bragging from their only encounter — her losing in a drinking game to one Jack Royal — the apparently unnerved Cana removed herself from her cautious stance as her features took on a blank one once she asked. "That reminds me." She said, pointing towards him nonchalantly. "Give back the panties you stole from me. They're not a prize for winning, ya weirdo."

Red faced, veins popping from his forehead. Magic aura rising to the heavens...Gildarts shouted at the top of his lungs after gathering such news. "YOU TOOK WHAT FROM HER!? I'LL CRUSH YOU INTO PIECES YOU RUNT!"

This time, the entire guild had to hold one of their own down from jumping onto the battlefield as Jack leaned past Cana to wave innocently towards Gildarts. "Hey hey now! A win always comes with a prize, and since Bacchus took your top before, I took the next best thing. It's not like I'm doing anything weird with them. They're just a momento to remind me of that victory. And once I win her again..." He winked. Then turned back to Gildarts once more. "Don't worry old man! If you can get past Sidney, I'll take you on no problem! I got a move waiting for you anyways, so once I beat Cana—"

A loud, raw thud was heard. Raw was the keyword, for the sound of bone on bone contact was cringing, causing everyone to buckle as eyes zipped towards the battlefield. Jack's entire head was snapped back, eyes glazed over as his view was now the sky above him. On the other side, Cana was holding her follow through — a right uppercut — brown hair hovering over her eyes, hiding her visage with a shadow as she then spoke in the most bold, hostile tone.

"Stupid. Don't speak about your next fight...when your actual opponent is still standing before you!" The bone rattling punch shocked everyone, including Jack himself as Cana's motions from the uppercut mimicked the one who annoyed her most, Gildarts. But...that was nowhere near enough to hold White Eclipse's heavy drinker down. His eyes regaining their earthen color, Jack clenched his teeth as he regained his wherewithal, jutting his momentum onward with his own right fist swinging forward — a powerful, straight punch aimed for Cana's own chin. The female as able to raise both of her arms after the shock of Jack still perfectly fine quickly wearing off, allowing her to cushion the powerful punch. Cana slid back from impact, but besides the new soreness in her own forearms, she was perfectly fine. Shaking off the rattling sting from her forearms, Cana quickly reached for and pulled out three cards from her deck, slinging them Jack's way. Surrounding Royal — "Thunder Bolt's Fate!" — a plethora of connecting lightning would emerge, attempting to strike Jack down where he stood.

Unsuccessful. Jack quickly countered with a simple right stomp, using his primary magic, Earth manipulation to create a dome just over his frame. The lightning struck only the molded rock, and dispersed into nothing; Jack's earth formation reclining back to its natural state as well. Only, once it did, the male brunette was no longer there. "Oh no! Your old tricks won't work, because I've already seen them!" Cana shouted, referring to a previous time watching Jack in action. Withdrawing another card, Cana slammed it against the ground just below her feet. Simultaneously to her own actions, the ground beneath her would split open and Jack would leap from underground. Yet, before he could attempt any type of offense, an explosion from Cana's card appeared, blowing Jack away from his target violently.

Arms up, and teeth clenched, Jack went sliding back as his heels dug into the ground to stop momentum. Not too affected by the explosion, yet more irritated at the comments as if he was only a monkey with a few memorable tricks. That teeth clenching scowl vanished, whipping to a malicious smirk as he slammed both hands on the ground. From his feet two pillars of earth would rise, then bend, and finally descend towards Cana at a breakneck pace. She leapt away from the first, leaping over and on top of the second as she was now in a dead sprint towards Jack with two more cards in her hands.

"Cana is on her game!" Lucy said, impressed by her movements. Gray nodded. "Ever since Jack disregarded her, talking past her to Gildarts, it's like a switch within her flipped. Good, if that's the motivation she needed...then ride it home, Cana!"

As Gray turned the rest of his analysis into an exclamation for the drunk of Fairy Tail, Cana leapt towards Jack with her dominate arm reared back. "Wind Edge!"

At the sound of her speak, Jack's demeanor switched back to a mischievous one. The second Cana's attack was summoned, Jack resorted to his secondary magic, cards as well. Grabbing two of his own and mimicking her own spell with a simple toss. "Wind Edge!" Two tunnels of wind magic collided with each other, creating a powerful stalemate.

"Oh? I thought he abandoned the cards." Bacchus said as he raised his gourd to his lips, laughing subtly. "That's a surprise to me. I figured he'd focus on Earth manipulation and that other magic instead."

"Other magic?" Chelia questioned, causing Sting and some of Sabertooth to look over as well in curiosity. "Oh yeah.." The Drunken Falcon said as he ominously lowered his gourd once more. "You guys weren't with us during the war. It was me, Cana and Jack, and let's just say, Jack has a wild ace up his sleeve. I'm not gonna ruin it for you all, but if Cana can take him to the distance, he may use it."

"Now I'm really curious." Sting said, turning back to the colliding winds.

"I'll just tell ya this. If you think I'm wild when drunk. Just sit tight, because you've seen nothing from this guy!"

"Tch! A stalemate!" She sneered, trying to focus through the two thick wind tunnels. Suddenly, thanks to the distracting winds, Cana was caught off guard as a large rock wall erected from behind. She turned instinctively, leaving her wide open as another rock pillar appeared through the colliding winds, slamming directly into her and sandwiching her against the newly formed wall. Rock on rock impact with Cana smushed in between, everything crumbled once collision was made. The winds also subsided. "Cana!" Gildarts shouted in worry, the rest of Fairy Tail grimacing as if they felt the blow she just took as well.

"Two rocks slamming into each other. Know what hurts worse than that?" Jack asked the brunette buried underneath the heavy rubble. He would then extend his right hand, a brownish aura coveting as the rubble began to quake. "Ask anyone, and they'll answer the same. They'd rather be hit with one large rock, than a bunch of smaller ones. Magnitude."

The declaration of his spell caused the uproar of rubble to fully begin. Following, the rubble would spread apart, revealing a struggling Cana underneath. The rubble would then begin to float around her, giving her no easy exit as it surrounded her.

"Huh?" The bruised brunette of Fairy Tail looked around, noticing the now spinning mini-boulders zooming around her as if she had her own gravitational pull. "Crush her!" He yelled to them as if they could hear. Squeezing his right hand into a fist however, they obeyed his command, expanding and then all colliding into each other while focusing on a single point... Cana Alberona.

"Look out! Cana!" A mixture of these yells of concern came from her guild mates, so she abided by their warnings with a counter attack just before succession. Grabbing a hand full of cards, in almost desperate fashion, Cana slung them all around. The crazy amount of cards each stuck to an incoming rock of their own, exploding on impact. The result? A way out. Through the smoke she created, Cana dashed out of harm's way of the remaining earth that threatened her well-being. Not only did she evade the incoming attack, but her underestimated speed propelled the brunette right in front of White Eclipse's own.

"Hu—" He didn't even have time to question, an elbow from Gildarts' only daughter slamming directly into the bridge of Jack Royal's nose, snapping his head back.

"Direct hit!" Gildarts shouted. "Not done yet!" Cana added as she drew another card from her deck, slapping it against Jack's chest with her right palm. "Prayer's Fountain!" Upon exclamation, the card she stamped on Royal expelled a powerful jet of water that sent him flying into the air.

"Oh, he's in trouble." Heather remarked calmly, watching her guild mate soar into the sky.

"Finish him!" Natsu and the others shouted from the other side.

"Alright!" With three cards now lying in her hands, shouting as she reared back and then launched them Jack's way, they began to catch a dark red fire. "Sun's Strength! Bring it on home!"

"Open your eyes Jack!" Jaxon yelled.

"Right now!" Reve added.

With the Prayer's Fountain dispersing, Jack struggled, but slowly opened his eyes just as commanded — only for the three cards to collide against him simultaneously for a fiery explosion.

"Shit!" The gunslinger cursed as Jack descended to the ground slowly, unmoving. As he fell, Cana placed a hand on her deck, hesitating as she began thinking. "Should I attack again, or is he actually out cold? If I let him awaken, he'll—"

His eyes flashed open...her's flashed wider. The grin on White Eclipse's faces matched the opposite spectrum of the potential despair in Fairy Tail's. Jack Royal was awake, and before hitting the ground, he flipped, landing on his feet in a crouch before standing tall once more. Battered, bruised, and thirsty...

"Dammit!" She cursed, clenching her deck of cards harder. "I should have finished him! Why did I hesitate against our biggest opponent!?"

Just as everyone suspected... "Alright. I'm getting bored of this, and you're not conceding, so..." He grabbed the flask from his hip, and the second he did, Bacchus face lit up in excitement.

"Hey hey, here it comes!" He shouted, standing to his feet. Almost linked to one another, as Bacchus calmed down a bit, he and Jack both spoke ominously; Bacchus explaining what was going on, while Jack gave Cana an entirely different lecture.

"Do you know what separates us, Cana? Why you'll never defeat me or Bacchus in drinking?" He asked, unclipping the flask from his holster. On it, a White Eclipse insignia was seen, but this wasn't new to her at all.

"Tch! I don't care about that right now!" She stammered back, causing Jack to grin. "Yes you do." He replied stale like, causing her to sneer. "It eats inside you, but it's not your fault. It's not your fault because...you drink to rid enjoy yourself. Me, and Bacchus. We drink to better ourselves."

It was Bacchus' turn; everyone watching from the sidelines facing him as he held up his own gourd. "What you're about to witness, is White Eclipse's — not strongest mage, but strongest form. When I drink, I become incredibly fast, more powerful, and WILDER than ever! The Drunken Falcon is what you know me by because of this." Cue the sudden shift to darkened features. "But when Jack Royal is drunk, and I mean really drunk, with that liquor he holds in that flask, he becomes a whole different monster; an entirely different being. He's no longer the man you see before him. I don't even know if he's human..."

From there, Jack continued on. "That's why you'll never outdrink us, but...what separates me from Bacchus... Is that the Drunken Falcon knows he a limit, where as the simple drunk, is too drunk to realize when he's past that limit!"

"Just shut up already!" Cana shouted, but she quickly became on guard as Jack raised the flask to his lips, swallowing the contents inside with just a few gulps. Those gulps were all he needed however, for everyone could see the changes with each swallow — something only Cana, White Eclipse, and Bacchus have seen before. His first gulp turned his entire face red, cheeks burning from the mysterious alcohol. From there, it almost seemed like he was struggling to down the rest, even though he drunk it all within seconds. The second gulp caused his body temperature to visibly drop. His skin becoming pale, his eyes lowering as if he was about to pass out. "Is he okay!?" Lucy shouted in question, but no one answered. Her worry continued. "He really doesn't look well! He's forcing himself to drink whatever that is, and it's not healthy!"

"You're right on both accounts, Lucy." Makarov stated. "He is forcing himself to drink it...because magic has a bitter taste."

"Magic? He's drinking magic?"

"Hai." Natsu nodded. "I can smell it from here. It's feint, but it really stinks! I bet it tastes horrible!"

"It's alcohol, perfectly brewed with Eclipse Magic to amplify its effects while also becoming a base for some sort of enigmatic ability, I'm sure. As for the unhealthy part..." Makarov sighed, turning his visage towards Cana. "It's not Jack that's in trouble here..."

"Cana..." The blonde whimpered as Jack took his final gulp. As he wiped his mouth from, his earthen colored eyes shut completely; the brunette wobbling in place.

"Oi, Cana! Attack him now!" Gray yelled, causing Cana to let out a slight chuckle, symbolizing how useless that would be. "Its too late for that."

"Huh?" Gray arched a brow as the others looked on, but finally, the transformation was complete. Bacchus rose once more, gourd high into the air. "Ladies and Gentlemen! If I remember correctly..."

As Jack raised his head once more, his entire face became pitch black, along with the rest of his frame except his attire.

"What you're witnessing here..."

"First, his left eye opened, sending chills down everyone's spine as they were no longer brownish green, bud pure, bright white — the entire eye.

"Wh...What's happening!?" Rogue asked, shocked beyond belief just like everyone else. The right eye would then follow — the entirety glowing just like his left; like moonlight in a crystal clear night sky.

Finally, Bacchus finished his boasting as Jack Royal showed a smile, pure white, from his tongue to his teeth and even inside of his mouth, giving off the shape of a crescent moon. "Meet Jack Royal's greatest form, Eclipsed Out!"

"So he's pitch black with white eyes and mouth." Minerva said, downplaying with a shrug as she looked on. "What's so special about that? What can he do now that he's drunk out of his mind?"

Bacchus simply smiled as Cana slowly withdrew another card from her deck. "What can he do? The answer is simple, Minerva. Everything."

Minerva raised a brow at the response, but the action was now back to Cana as she tossed three explosive cards zoomed towards Jack. Without saying a word, raising his right hand, Jack held out an open palm, and from that palm, a familiar net shaped magic spell was formed, catching Natsu and Gildarts's eyes as Cana's cards were sliced into pieces — the net still rushing towards Cana.

"He sliced my cards?" She asked herself, only to hear her father in the background. "CANA! GET OUT THE WAY!"

His warning saved her, Cana desperately diving out the way as the net of Crash Magic flew away harmlessly towards a rock formation, slicing that into pieces as well.

"WHAAT!? CRASH MAGIC!? H-HOW!?" Natsu shouted, asking what everyone wanted to know. "He doesn't know Crash Magic, does he?" Gajeel asked. Makarov answered, putting two and two together. "Jack Royal may not know Crash Magic, but I have a feeling that this enigma before us, knows a lot more than just that."

Cana struggled to her feet, grimacing from the self inflicted fall she had to take just to avoid the Crash Magic seconds ago. "Dammit...! Even though I'm aware of Eclipsed Out, it doesn't mean I'm gonna be aware of what spell he uses! He doesn't even know what spell he uses! But there's one flaw here where I can take advantage...But at the same time, it's risky, so I can't rely on it."

A handful of cards in her grasp, Cana flung them forward, but, they stopped in place the second she released them. With Jack's right hand still extended, a visible purple aura was spotted around Cana in a small radius. Suddenly, Cana and her cards fell to the ground violently, smashing into the earth thanks to an immense pressure pushing her down.

"Gravity too!?" Juvia asked as Cana struggled to fight back, trying her hardest to push out of the gravitational hold.

"I'm starting to understand." Laxus said, catching their attention. "When the old man said that he was drinking Eclipse Magic, the mixture of alcohol has blocked his senses; senses that are the foundation of using magic."

"So you're saying..." Mirajane started. "...That Jack is so intoxicated, that it's not the fact that he knows different magics..."

Laxus then finished with a nod. "It's the fact that he's so drunk, that he legitimately doesn't know what magic is his, so he's using them all."

"It's like a drunk not knowing which drink is his once he puts it down." Elfman added. "It doesn't stop him from drinking. He does the manly drunken thing and drinks whatever he picks up. Tch, Cana really is in a bind then! Come on, Cana!"

"If I could move I would...!" She uttered under the heavy pressure, her fingers clawing into the ground as she futilely attempted to rise. Suddenly, the gravity stopped. "Huh?" She questioned, feeling relief, but only for a split second as inhaling could be heard from Jack.

"IS HE!?" Natsu shouted. "NO WAY!?" Gajeel added, Laxus tsking as Wendy shouted. "Cana-san! Watch out!" Jack lurched his head forward, opening his mouth and firing a powerful torrent of flames.

"That's Natsu-san's attack!" Sting shouted. "What a freak." Eve of the Trimen added.

"Cana!" Gildarts yelled again in warning, but it was too late. She was smothered in flames, trapped in the eye of the roar as it traveled out of harm's way until it no longer existed.

"That could be it..."

"NOT YET!" From the flames she shouted, once again dashing right through them, charred skin and all.

Jack was unable to express any emotions in his state, but from Cana's sheer tenacity, the drunken one seemed unable to move for a second. That was when she pulled out her trump card. "Card...Dimension!" She shouted, and every eye in Fairy Tail lit up in anxiousness and hope as Cana pressed the card to Jack's body. A moment's pause, the card then began to glow and following right behind so...Jack disappeared — the card itself floating back to the ground.

Takeru looked on in shock. "Where'd he go...? I've never seen him use this spell before?" Selene then clenched her jaw as Cana confidently wobbled over. "Jack didn't disappear on his own... Cana has a spell, that absolutely traps people in her cards." At that moment, she picked up the card, holding it high into the air as a crescendo of cheers were about to erupt from her guild's side. "Jack...is stuck in that card."

"Well well." She boasted, barely standing herself. "It seems that's a win for Fairy Tail."

"Is it?" Calium asked genuinely, Makarov returning with a shrug. "He's conscious in there, but he can't be released, so he'd just be wasting time to not give up."

"But...Jack won't give up in that form. He can't even speak. He can barely feel." Reve noted. Sidney then raised his hand. "I'll make the call. Walk him over here and hand us the card. Then, it'll be your win."

"Sidney!?" Luke exclaimed, confused.

"Make sure you walk, however. It's only a fair trade to your tactic."

"Tch. No problem!" Cana replied as she began walking towards Sidney and the others, limping.

"Sidney! What're you doing!? We could have waited!" Selene shouted. "Wait for what?" He asked in return. "Do you not remember Jack's only weakness when he's drunk?" Selene stopped, blinking a few times before slowly nodding in remembrance. Sidney then turned back to the incoming Cana, about halfway to her destination. "If Jack is truly done here, then there's nothing we can do but grab the momentum back next fight. But if he's the Jack Royal I know..."

Right on cue. Before Cana could make it to White Eclipse side fully, the card she trapped Jack in began to shine brightly. "Wh...what!? How!?" She stammered, but as she dropped the card, it ripped open in a flash. With that flash disappearing, Jack rose once more, slowly standing up straight as best as his drunken waver could, smiling, if you would call it that, towards his opponent.

"HE BROKE OUT!" A chorus of both sides rang, one side joyous, the other in disbelief, but both sides in harmony.

"Hey! You don't have much time!" Sidney yelled, catching everyone's ear.

"That's right...!" Cana said, throwing off her jacket after showing realization. "I still have the trump card, and it should be ending soon! But still, he can defeat me in one blow if he uses the right spell, so I CAN'T WAIT FOR THAT! EVEN IF IT ARRIVES WITHIN THE NEXT FIVE SECONDS! YOU'RE GOING DOWN NOW!"

The out of his mind Jack Royal was in the midst of raising his right hand for another game of Magic roulette until he was halted still by Cana's glowing forearm. The markings on her arm began to glow that familiar golden shine, and once at its peak, she raised her arm to the sky.

"GO! CANA!" Erza shouted, Natsu and the others cheering right behind her. That's when she grinned as the blinding light surrounded Jack. "Don't worry, ill dull it down to where you're only outta commission. I'm no killer. Gather, O river of light guided by the fairies...!"

"She's really going for it!" Kuro shouted.

"She's pretty close to us too!" Waiston added, shielding his eyes from the bright view. "Come on Jack...one more drunken miracle. Just one!"

Now, extending her arm forward, using her left to hold it stable, she shouted. "This is the end! Fairy Glitter!"

A ring of light surrounded Jack Royal, and suddenly, the impending blinding explosion occurred, consuming not only Jack, but the entire area around them, just short of White Eclipse's sidelines. The brightness alone was devastating, not to mention the cataclysmic damage done by one of Fairy Tail's three great magics. The smoke was clearing, and Cana could be seen huffing, panting, obviously both out of magic and strength. The smoke was clearing, but for some reason, the brightness wasn't.

"That's it, right?" Lucy asked. "Cana, you can drop the spell now before you..." Her words trailed off. She was the last to realize it, but Fairy Tail was now awe struck, despair reaching their stomachs from what they saw...

The smoke was clearing, but the brightness wasn't... the brightness, that belonged to —

"H...h...How?" Fairy Tail's guild master stammered. Even Calium himself was in awe. "I knew that Eclipsed Out gave Jack an unlimited subconscious of magic, but I never thought he'd be able to pull off..."

"That's that spell that Lucy used..." Minerva said, a cold shiver sent down her spine at the thought as she finished her sentence. "...To capture and defeat Acnologia..."

"Fairy Cirlce... by himself..." Lucy shakily spoke, trembling in fear as Fairy Glitter did nothing but fail in wake of its defensive counterpart. It was unmistakably Fairy Circle. The insignia and everything was glowing brightly as if Jack was a member of the guild himself, and as he then released the spell from its shape, he stood before Cana, towering over her as she fell to her knees, trembling, shaking.

"I...How could you do that? Even in that ridiculous form of yours...you can perform Fairy Circle?" Unwillingly, she bowed her head, hands to the ground to help her knees with the support, whimpering in disbelief. "I have nothing left..! Just finish me!" She shouted, tears welling up in her eyes.

Jack would happily oblige, raising his right hand to finish her off.

"It's over!" Reve shouted as the ground began to shake from the incoming spell. The ground began to break apart as Jack readied the final blow. His smile grew wider, into a much larger crescent moon as his palm began to glow and finally...

Something clicked. Jack was now staring into space, and seconds later, color came back to his skin, and his pure white eyes and smile turned back to their normal color as the drunkard of White Eclipse fell forward, hitting the ground face first.

"And there's the only weakness it holds." Bacchus spoke ominously. "For everyone knows, it's only a matter of time...until someone who is completely wasted, passes out from too much alcohol..."

Makarov didn't know what to call, but as he looked up, Calium sadly raised his right hand. "Jack Royal is unconscious, meaning he is unable to fight. Your winner...is Cana Alberona."

"She...DID IIIIIIT!" Natsu shouted as the rest of Fairy Tail celebrated their victory. Cana on the other hand, kept her head down, even as she stood up to walk away. "The trump card. He passed out that time during the war too. I knew it was coming, but..." She opened and then clenched her trembling hand, biting down on her lower lip in anger and sadness. "This was no victory. Surviving doesn't count...and this was my last chance for that!"

"OOOOOOIIIIIIII!" He shouted, hands cupped around his mouth likena megaphone. "If you're thinking, I didn't win, I just survived, then stop right now! If you're that down about it, then beat your next opponent next round, but you fought your hardest! That's when surviving is acceptable! You survived, and because of that, you won! Cana Alberona! Lift your head and raise your hand high! You made me, and your guild proud!"

Quietly she choked up, clenching her teeth as she did what she was told by her father. "Sh-shitty dad! Making me cry in front of everyone! I'll definitely have a clear victory next round! I promise!" With the Fairy Tail signed held high, they cheered for her once more as she shouted to the sky. On the other side however...

"With Jack down we not only gave up another point, but we took a heavy blow to our roster too." Reve explained, tapping his foot, annoyed. Heather then came in. "If you're deciding if we should make the first move, it's a bit too late." The Dragon Slayer then pointed towards Fairy Tail's side.

Reve showed a bit of surprise, brows raised as he watched the male make his way to the battlefield's center.

"GRAY-SAMA! DO YOUR BEST! JUVIA IS ROOTING FOR YOU!"

The flame haired male from White Eclipse lit up. It was time, hearing that Gray Fullbuster was on his way.

"Kuro." Reve called out, stopping him in his tracks. He turned around, curious as to what his S class had to say; expecting some form of advice that he didn't really need, given the nature of what was about to come. What he got was nothing of the sort though. Just a serious Reve Volver, the simplicity ironically fueling Kuro for the incoming fight. "We're only up one against a guild full of miracles. Remember what I told you. If miracles truly existed...Mary would be alive right now."

"Dark!" Jaxon spoke, surprised.

"Reve, what the hell?" Selene asked, shocked as well. But Kuro seemed to be the only one who was unfazed, nodding once wit determination. "Right. There's no such thing as miracles, just your fullest potential. Thanks, Reve."

Everyone else, confused; Kuro, ready to go as he rotated his arms once arriving before Gray himself.

"It's time." Gray said, discarding his jacket and shirt, signifying that he was going all out from the beginning.

"Hai." Kuro agreed, buttoning up his fitted jacket to no longer expose his torso. Sliding into his maker's stance, flames erupted around Kuro's hands. The same happened with Gray, except with his patented ice.

"Two students of the greatest ice and fire make mages ever. How funny they've walked nearly the exact same path, yet their elements are the exact opposite. We're in for a treat here."

"These are the grounds where I prove that Fire-Make is superior! Just like I did during the Grand Magic Games!" Kuro exclaimed, smirking after his comment. Gray scowled, but then grinned himself. "That's wrong, because thanks to the teachings of Ur, I never lose to the same opponent twice. You got your one against me already, so don't ever forget it Kuro, because it will never happen again!"

"THEN...

Both: BRING IT ON!"


	6. Chapter 6: Generations

Chapter 6: Generations

{Flashback}

"Ice Make:..." Pressing a fist into her open palm, she slowly removed one hand from the other. Now, in that same open hand, a small rose appeared, gathering collective murmurs of amazement from the small crowd of Council Members before her. "You see, my magic has the ability to create objects out of ice. Of course I can create anything, from animals to weaponry, to ordinary objects, making me your top pick for Wizard Saint...if I wanted the position that is."

Gran Doma nodded. "It's a shame you're only here because this was mandatory, Ur. Your magic seems one of a kind, and you're quite the powerful mage as well. With someone like you as a Saint—"

"Oh wow!" Sarcasm rung heavily as the two giant doors that led to the present room flung open. A woman with short, reddish-orange gradient hair appeared, slow clapping in faux amusement as she reached the already huffing Ur Milcovich. "Mary Crane. What could you want?"

The woman now identified made her way next to Ur with the most smug look, belittling Ur's magic with her comments. "Just wanted to be amazed at how you can take a solid matter, Ice, and make objects out of them! That must be so hard!" Again, the sarcasm ran like a faucet, causing Ur's eyebrow to twitch. Doma then raised up the papers from his desk, clearing his throat to break up the tension. "Ahem! Mary, you were next, but since you couldn't wait..."

"My apologies, Gran Doma." She bowed. "I just figured Ur wouldn't have much to show since it was really a basic magic, is all."

"What did you say!?" She threatened through her teeth.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I'll show you real maker magic. You see, anyone can make solid objects, out of a well...solid object! But what takes real strength..." As she spoke, Mary pressed both hands together, slowly releasing it as a bright red light formed in the space between them. Gradually, a rose made completely out of fire formed, Mary holding it in her open palm as she showed the now wowed Councilmen. "What takes real strength, is creating a solid object, out of the intangible. This is why, fire is stronger than ice. You're lucky I have other things to do besides be a Wizard Saint." She winked at her long time rival. Clearly, Mary had won this petty battle between them.

Ur: She was the only one to ever make me doubt my magic...myself. I would always bounce back, and hit her just as hard, but Fire and Ice really don't get along. They can, in terms of destruction, but to coexist..it's impossible. Mary and I proved that. Our back and forths were always even, but there was one time where I truly believed that Fire was stronger than Ice thanks to her...

{End Flashback}

Gray: It's strange..

Kuro: As I stand here before him... For the final time...

Gray And Kuro: It feels like I've known this rival of mine my entire life..

Calium: And...Begin!

"Fire Make: Javelin!" A Red magic seal formed before the Fire Maker, and from it, a plethora of javelins made from flames roared towards Gray at an immense speed.

"Ice Make: Freeze Lancer!" A blue magic seal formed before the Ice Maker, and just as the javelins, the lances came in abundance, roaring towards and slamming into the incoming flames of javelins. Fire and Ice colliding, creating a beautiful array of glacial sparks that fell to nothing as they drifted towards the ground. Through that array however, Kuro was seen speeding towards Gray in a blur. Connected to his feet, were small wings of fire at his heels. The surprising speed was too much for Gray, and the Fairy Tail mage caught a heavy right punch to the gut, causing him to hunch over as Kuro's fist sent him flying backwards through its followthrough.

"Gwah!" Gray's estranged sound coming from the reaction of taking Kuro's punch full force, the Ice Mage went tumbling through the ground before finally rolling to a stop — hands grazing the ground to stop his momentum. The moment he looked up...Kuro was right before him with another right fist reared back.

"Kuro got the jump on him by dropping the incantations to his magic." Reve noted. Luke nodded. "Kuro is amazing when he wants to be. They both started off with incantations, but Kuro jumped Gray by conjuring his Fire Make: Hermès spell without announcing it. Even the little things have shown everyone's growth."

Gray's eyes widened as Kuro appeared before him. With the redhead swinging his right fist for Gray's jaw, Fullbuster placed both arms before his own face to brace for impact. Within that same second however..

"A feint!" Cygnus shouted excitedly, causing Gray to relieve his positioning only to see that Kuro retracted his punch — hands now pressed together as he recited. "Fire Make: Tornado!"

One of Kuro's more powerful Fire Make spells, Gray's eyes slowly widened to their peak as Kuro pressed his hands to the ground directly before him. Just beneath the dark haired male, a flaming Tornado was born, rising from the earth and now traveling back towards the Fairy Tail side with an agonized Gray inside, screaming his lungs out in pain. "Gray-sama!" Juvia shouted in worry from the sidelines as the tornado dispersed, leaving a charred Gray Fullbuster lying on the ground only momentarily. "S...shit! I let him get the jump on me like that!" He cursed himself as he made his way up to a knee, and then slowly back to his feet.

"Oi...what the hell, Gray!?" Natsu shouted at the staggering Fairy Tail member. "You just started!"

"S-shut up!" He shouted back, embarrassed. Huffing once, he refocused as Kuro waited for him on the opposite side, his Hermes technique still viable.

"But he's right...Kuro got the jump on me and now I'm paying for it. Which means the only strategy here now, is to pay him back, or I'll be in deep trouble.." Wiping his mouth from any extra blood, Gray slowly raised to his feet, standing once again with confidence brimming. Kuro returned the grin, a rare sight from the ironically kind hearted Fire Maker. "I'm glad you didn't quit after that!" He stated. "Because I want to absolutely defeat you!"

"Tch! When have I ever shown quit, Kuro? Don't take shots at me like that. Besides... I've felt way hotter flames than that before, so that last attack was nothing to me. Now, let's get started for real this time!" "If you insist!" Kuro shouted, rushing towards Gray with that immense speed once again thanks to the Fire Make: Hermès. Gray quickly took his maker's stance once again, pressing hands to the ground as he shouted. "Ice Make: Floor!" "A weak trick!" Kuro shouted during his pursuit of his ice counterpart. Before the floor of ice could completely cover the area, Kuro lunged towards him, cocking another fist back for a powerful blow. That's when Gray gave off a sly grin. "The floor isn't to trip you up." He murmured. "It's to help me keep up with your borrowed speed!" The second he shouted that, Gray simply spun, turning his entire frame to the left, just enough for Kuro Crane to miss his target, momentum carrying him a bit too far as Gray crouched into his maker's stance once again.

"Ice Make: Knuckles!" Slamming his hands down once more, from a magic seal a group of fists made from pure ice appeared, rocketing upwards as they slammed into Kuro's abdomen, causing him to cough out in pain with widened eyes. Launched back as well, the fire maker landed hard on the newly icy surface, his Hermès dying out as icing on the cake for Gray. He struggled to his feet, but as he tried, Gray lunged for him, sliding at a surprisingly quickened pace as ice extended to a sharp point from his left elbow and right hand. "You're done! Ice Blade: Seven Slice Dance!"

"Kuro! Move!" Waiston yelled, but it was too late. Instead of evading, the second he looked up, the fire haired male was met with a spinning Gray Fullbuster, each spinning slice connecting with direct hits until he finally stopped on his seventh spin, and Kuro fell backwards, destroyed shirt and jacket; completely ripped to shreds. "Heh.."

"Way to go Gray-Sama!" Juvia shouted, swooning in front of everyone as they cheered. White Eclipse was completely silent. "Well that was anticlimactic." Laxus noted. Mirajane nodded with a smile. "Yes, but Gray is still fresh for the next round and now we've tied the score again!"

At this time, Gray held out a hand for Kuro with a small smile. "It looks like ice wins, Kuro. Good try though." His brimming confidence remained even as Kuro refused to move, but it was not even a second later that Kuro's body would suddenly disappear in a mess of flames that quickly fizzled out.

"Huh!?" Gray questioned, looking around as Reve and the others regained their vigor, grinning at Kuro's trick. "You didn't really think it was that simple against Kuro, did you?" The gunslinger asked.

"Tch." Gray sucked his teeth, but as his eyes continued to wander, searching for Kuro, small, red glowing orbs began to manifest around him. "I remember this technique." He said, sliding into his own maker's stance to ready himself. "They explode if I touch them, so if I just stay away from them..."

"Wrong again." Kuro said confidently, appearing a ways behind Gray with his right arm extended, his hand an open palm. With that confidence brewing within a small smirk, the fire maker squeezed his hand shut, causing the fireflies to not only move, but fly around Gray at an immense speed. "The hell is this!?" Gray asked, demanding an answer — one that he would receive as a single "firefly" removed itself from the spinning vortex of its own hive and flew towards the Ice Maker. Once it was in range of the befuddled Fairy Tail member, the glowing bug exploded, causing a chain reaction of explosion all around him. No one could see inside the spinning vortex of flaming fireflies, even as hey exploded. All they could do, was listen as Gray himself let out an agonizing scream that was just barely audible over the loud explosions themselves.

"GRAY-SAMA!" Juvia shouted in fear, worrisome to what the results would be once the smoke cleared from Kuro's technique. Kuro himself waited as well, cautious as he crouched in waiting. Seconds later, Kuro's eyes quickly cut to his peripherals, turning his entire frame about face to avoid the incoming saucers. "I knew you were just fine!" Kuro said as he leapt away from the saucers making another trip around. As the smoke finally cleared, Gray's "body" could be seen falling forward as if he was defeated, only to turn completely into ice, revealing it to be simply a clone of the ice maker before shattering against the earth it once stood upon. Kuro remained vigilante, looking for his opponent with his hands already shifting into his maker's position.

"They're feeling each other out, but at the same time..." Erza began.

"...They're trying to dominate one another." Reve finished. Kuro's eyes to the right as Gray re-emerged, glaring towards Kuro with a plethora of bruises upon his body. That's when the Fire Maker smirked. "So some of those still got you after all. Heh...I thought you would have come more prepared than this, Gray!"

Frowning, Gray slowly shifted into a stance, spitting to the side once before turning to face his opponent once more. "Just shut up and get ready to lose."

"Say no more! Fire Make:..." Gray grinned the second Kuro went into motion. Black markings began crawling up his skin, quickly reaching up to his right eye as his hair stood up on its own. "Kuro!" Waiston shouted, but it was too late. "...Battle Axe!" Simultaneously to his creation, Kuro charged Gray, tightening his grip around the large flaming axe as he kept tunnel vision towards his target. Rearing back, Kuro then swung his axe downward, aiming for the top of Gray's skull. At that moment, Gray simply swayed his right arm from left to right — palm extended outward. From that simple swaying motion, everything in the vicinity just froze! Kuro was frozen solid along with his flaming axe, unable to move in the coated ice he was placed in.

"Shit! Kuro!" Takeru and the others showed their worry as the Fire Maker remained still, encased in his opposing element. Gray simply stared before him as Makarov raised a hand. "Kuro is—"

"Master!" Gray yelled, halting Makarov's call. Gray's eyes never left his Maker rival, only breathing slowly, heavily with a grin on his face as he then called out. "This isn't over.." He said and just as he did, cracks began to form across the ice casing that sealed Kuro. "In fact. It's only the halfway point."

Not even a second later, the ice around Kuro shattered, creating an undaunted light of crystals as they fell to the ground harmlessly. Kuro was free once again, but just as Gray was now, with his fiery red hair standing at attention and white markings appearing around his arms, Kuro Crane himself now stood as the Fire Devil Slayer.

The two stood face to face, both elemental auras mixing together from the close proximity and backlashing from the mixture. Kuro and Gray continued glaring until the Fairy Tail Mage cracked a smirk. "I thought I finally had something to put down the flames. Something that would put me above both you and Natsu. Being above my own friend wasn't a goal, but for some reason, I wanted to never let you ahead of me, and I could tell deep down, that it had nothing to do with our guilds disliking each other. It was something else, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.."

Kuro nodded. "I felt the exact same way. So when I gained this gift without knowing you had it too, I felt like I've reached that peak. But here you are, in my way once again. So I'm glad this is happening. This will decided..."

Gray finished, "...which is stronger. Fire or Ice."

Like a mirror, they both raised their right hand to their faces, fingers extended straight up as the aura around them began to pick up. That's when the final round of this fight began.

"Fire Make..."

"Ice Make..."

"Gold!"

"Silver!"

From their stances, the aura resonating around them each exploded in their respective elements — clashing once more in a chaotic dance of fire and ice.

"Maker techniques while in their Slayer forms. Geez! I don't know if I'm hot or cold right now." Jaxon stated looking on uncomfortably. "Both of course." Takeru added in the obvious answer. All eyes were on the two Devil Slayers, yet not another word was spoken from the audience as Gray was the first to leap back.

"Tch." He sucked his teeth, looking down upon his right arm which now had somewhat of a burn mark up it's limb. Pressing his left hand to it, he applied his own ice magic to cool the burning, but as he looked up, he could see Kuro walking towards him with brimming confidence.

"Fire's always held more of an explosive trait." Natsu said, arms folded over his chest. Lucy then turned to him, confused, then worried. "Are you saying Kuro's Fire is stronger than Gray's Ice Magic?" Natsu shook his head, keeping sights on the fight. "Not at all, but I ain't saying Gray is stronger either. Just like the others, we'll just have to wait and see what happens." Lucy blinked, then turned back to the fight as well, murmuring to herself. "For Natsu to not just shout out how Gray was going to win...it says a lot about how these guys have always been our biggest rivals. It's scary to know such a thing when I stop to think about it.. Come on Gray! Even the score!"

"Ice Devil's Zeroth Destruction Fist!" Gaining an iced armor plating over his hands and forearms, Gray quickly slid towards the incoming Kuro, deciding not to wait for his opponent to approach him. The distance was covered instantly, yet not fast enough as Kuro too had the same idea against his opponent.

"Fire Devil's Chaotic Fist!" Just like Gray, Kuro appeared with armor plating around his limbs, wrapped in his own element. Two right fists then collided, creating a stalemate of fire and ice once more. The shockwave creating sparkling crystals of frozen flames that fell to the ground harmlessly. This happened again and again as the two continued to exchange blows only to slam fist to fist with each collision. It took some time and energy, but finally an opening was found by Gray Fullbuster, slamming an uppercut to Kuro's jawline. Blood spewing from his mouth, Kuro stumbled backwards from the powerful blow, causing everyone to flinch as everyone cringed from the strike. Gray refused to let up, lunging towards the groggy Kuro with his right fist reared back. Swinging the heavy punch forward, he missed — Kuro ducking underneath out of pure desperation as he attempted to regain himself in such a small window of time allowed. With an opening of his own, the redhead slammed a half hearted right punch of his own into Gray's abdomen, causing him to hunch over with a pained expression. Kuro tried to follow up, swinging a left haymaker for Gray's jaw but the Ice Maker leaned away, causing yet another opening of his own. With that opening, he slammed a powerful hammer-fist to the top of Kuro's skull, slamming him into the ground from the impact.

Gray attempted a follow up, aiming a right fist for the back of Kuro's head, only for the Fire-Maker to just roll out the way. Hands planted on the ground as he rolled up to a crouching position, Kuro pressed down, creating a large heated area just beneath Gray. His eyes widened in shock. "Flame Devil's —" Gray quickly retaliated by pressing his hands to the ground as well, basically mimicking Kuro's actions. "Ice Devil's—"

Kuro and Gray together: "Tower!"

Simultaneously to their actions, a tower of scorching hot flames rose to the sky, Gray caught in the middle at its base as the same happened to Kuro; a tower of ice rising to the sky with the Eclipse member caught within its frozen stature.

"Okay, now it's cold!" Jaxon yelled as he and a few of the White Eclipse mages began shivering thanks to the ice tower. "Woo!" Natsu shouted as he grinned towards Kuro's tower that caused some of his guild mates to sweat from the unbearable heat. "Oi! Even Gray should be burning inside that!"

"Hey, who's side are you on?" Lucy asked, fanning herself while trying to step away from the tower's burning heat. "It's burning hot! I can feel it from here!" Levy shouted. "How can Gray handle that? I hope he's okay..."

"Gray-Sama.." Juvia whined quietly, hands balled against her chest as she ignored the heat the best she could, still keeping a front row seat to the fight.

"I don't think anyone is okay right now. And that goes double for Kuro and Gray." Laxus added.

As everyone continued to watch, the two towers refused to let up, neither one releasing their spells despite being caught inside the other. Reve then yelled out to his comrade. "Kuro! Don't you give up! Fire is more destructive! This is your win!"

"He's right Kuro!" Waiston added. "Even I know! You got this!"

Kuro was frozen solid. Gray was unmoving inside a tower of flames, but suddenly, both towers began to waver. Kuro's Tower was slowly consumed by ice that climbed its counterpart, while Gray's Tower quickly began melting into nothing but a large puddle of water. Now standing knee deep in that water, Kuro panted heavily as he tried to regain himself. That's when Selene called out to him. "K-Kuro! Kuro get up!" She yelled, but all he could do was slowly look up as Gray was seen in the same condition as him, except now as he stood atop that frozen tower once made of fire, Fullbuster held back a large bow made of ice.

"This is it. Good try, Kuro, but I never lose to the same opponent twice. Ice Devil's Zeroth Destruction Bow!" Upon his exclamation, Gray fired a giant Ice arrow with all of his might, even recoiling from his own strength behind it, plus the lack of balance he now had thanks to the long battle with Kuro. The arrow was coming in fast — almost too fast to see. "This is it!" Natsu shouted, everyone on the edge as that arrow neared a Kuro incapable of evasion.

Ur: ...but there was one time where I truly believed that Fire was stronger than Ice thanks to her...

{Flashback}

Ur was on her knees, holding her right arm in pain as she panted heavily. Before her, was Mary Crane, bruised as well, but grinning as she stood next to one of her own techniques. "The Fire Maker's Jar. You jumped right at it because it was made of flames. Just like I knew you would. You thought you'd just freeze this bad boy with your ice, because you're so prideful, but in reality, my Maker's Jar can absorb any element..." Just then the Jar began glowing, and Mary began to bulk up a bit, along with gaining a fiery aura. "...And use that magical power behind it to aid me in strength. This is only the surface of why Fire is better than Ice, Ur."

Ur could only grimace, flinch in pain. No matter what she threw, the Jar would absorb it and amplify Mary's strength. She lowered her head, hair covering her eyes as Mary took steps forward. "Well then, you ready to admit which element is superior?" Mary asked, forming a broad sword in her hand. That's when Ur struggled to her feet. "Some messy trick you got there, Mary." "Huh?" The Fire Maker frowned, arching a brow. Ur spat once before grinning. "You caught me for a bit, but if I can't throw Ice techniques at you..."

{End Flashback}

"Fire Make..." Kuro began, and then finished just in time, slamming his hands to the ground. "...Maker's Jar!" As he yelled, a large jar made of flames appeared, and just before the arrow could hit, it was absorbed by the jar, sucked inside and dissipated into nothing but raw magic.

"What the hell!?" Gray shouted, stuck in a state of disbelief. His panting was only accompanied by his shaking visage, along with everyone else who thought this bout was over. Slowly, as he began glowing and bulking up in muscle, Kuro rose to his feet, creating a long sword in his right hand, strictly of flames. At the same time, Gray dropped down from the ice geyser he created, glaring towards Kuro while bracing himself against that geyser to stay on his feet. "...Kch! Dammit!" He cursed aloud, though Kuro didn't move nor did he change expression from his serious glare. "I wanted to avoid this. I haven't thought of a real counter to that blasted thing. It just eats everything I throw at it...!" Suddenly, Gray's eyes lit up, thanks to the sword in Kuro's hand. Following, a grin appeared on his banged up features. "So It's come to that, huh? I can do that." Kuro raised a brow, but Gray slid into his maker's stance once more. "Ice Bringer!" He shouted, creating a large sword in his hands. Slowly, the devil markings that covered Kuro and Gray began disappearing, leaving them in their normal state.

"This is what it's come to. Where it all started." Gray tightened the grip of his Ice Bringer as Kuro did the same to his sword. "I feel like...I'm living in my own life, yet...someone else's. As if I'm repeating a certain event. I hope the outcome was in their favor if that's the case." His rambling didn't deter Gray's determination nor his own. Instead, the two students began walking towards each other. That walk would then pick up to a jog. "If I can't throw any ice techniques at you with that stupid jar in place...then..."

"The ultimate trap. The Maker's Jar." Kuro murmured, feeling confident as his speed began to pick up. "Thank you, Mary." He now spoke aloud. "Because of you, I'm feeling strong! I know I have more in me than Gray right now, and that's all that I need! Please, Mary.."

"Ur..." Gray murmured. They both then yelled out. "One last time! Push me forward!"

They were both a full speed now, on a collision course towards each other with their elemental weapons reared back behind their heads. Everyone glued to the final draw, Kuro let out a loud battle cry as the two swung simultaneously, a horizontal slash from both sides.

Ur and Gray: "...Then I'll allow you to feel the touch of Ice first hand..."

Clean slices, both mages passing each other in a classic showdown fashion. The second it ended, Gray could be seen with an enormous gash on his chest, burning against his exposed chest in an unbearable manner. He immediately fell to his hands and knees, left hand gripping his chest as he cried out in immense pain. Kuro on the other hand, had nothing on him but a simple scar. "Fire burns..." Kuro said as he stood up straight, turning to face Gray once more with his sword pointed towards him. "That effect...plus the ability to make solid objects...it's nearly unstoppable. Heh, our last fight, and it ended this way...I'm sorry, Mary."

As Gray was clutching his chest, crying in pain basically, Kuro simply stood with a smile. From the left corner of his curled lips however, blood began to fall as he tilted back.

"Kuro...!?" Reve shouted, unsure of what was happening. The truth became clear though however, as Kuro fell backwards, and half way down, from his open scar where Gray's Ice Bringer connected, ice shot out from his chest like stalagmites instantly created by Gray's hands. Kuro then fell to the ground, unconscious as Gray continued to scream in pain as he rose to his feet. With his head tilted back, that scream of pain turned to one of victory as he remained standing. Makarov then raised his hand with a huge smile on his face as he shouted, "THE WINNER! GRAY FULLBUSTER!"

"ALRIGHT GRAY!" Natsu shouted! "GRAY-SAMA!" Juvia joined in, running towards the beaten down ice maker as he fell to his knees with a weakened smile.

"Oi...they caught up just that fast." Jaxon pointed out.

"Kuro..." Kairi called out quietly, feeling down about the hard fought defeat he just took. "I was certain..."

"It's tied three a piece...can I go now?" Takeru asked. Reve looked around. "No. You're going to beat Natsu. I know that. So we need that victory when it matters the most. For either true despair for them, or for a light of hope for us."

Takeru sighed heavily, but remained quiet for he understood Reve's motives. "Well?" Selene asked. "We need someone. Or are we going to let them decide before we do?"

Reve didn't move. "Actually, thats a good idea. Look who's walking up right now."

"Hm?" Jaxon smirked, patting an unconscious Kuro on the head as he began walking forward. "Don't lose. It'd be sad if I made it to the next round and you didn't." Waiston said. Jaxon laughed. "Hey, don't worry about me. This is a mismatch. They really paired this guy up with me, just to fill a spot."

"With that attitude, this better be over quick." Sidney said, which Jaxon simply smirked before walking towards his opponent. That's when Makarov yelled out.

"It's time for the fourth fight! Jaxon Meteoro, vs..."

"Kyahahaha!" He laughed as he appeared before the green haired Weather Mage. Eyes glowing through his headwear with four totems floating around him, the Raijinshu Seith stood proudly, ready to represent the guild that was branded upon his tongue. "Bickslow! Are you both ready!?"

"Don't you dare look down on me! Me and my babies are going to give you a show before we put you down!" The Seith Mage shouted, his babies behind him repeating "put you down" multiple times. Jaxon simply stared before chuckling cockily. "Don't look down on you? That ship has already sailed, weirdo. So, get ready to join Freed in the loser's bracket!"

"Begin!"


End file.
